Prevalence of Violation Among Nurses Working in Public Health Facilities in Saudi Arabia

Workplace violence (WPV) is more likely to affect those who work in community services, notably nurses. WPV is generally recognized as a workplace health hazard and has been a significant concern in a number of countries. Limited studies have been conducted in the global countries and this study was designed as a cross-sectional study from Saudi Arabia to document the WPV among the nurses. The aim of this study was to enroll the consequences obtain during the WPV among the nurses in Saudi Arabia. In this cross-sectional study, we have enrolled 550 nurses based on the signed of informed consent form and filled questionnaire. The study results indicated that 77.6% of nurses were violated at work. The 90.4% of the majority violations were classified as verbal abuse. The relatives of the patients violated 66.7% of the nurses, and the occurrence occurred during the evening shifts of the working hours between 2.30-10.30pm. The most violations occurred in the patient room, accounting for 46.8% of all violations, with the severe workload accounting for 89.2% of all violations. However, among the violations, 21.4% of the nurses were reported to senior management. In conclusion, this study confirms the nurses who have participated in this were mentally strong in handling the WPV during their job. Further studies are required for looking at the factors that increase the chance of a repeat event and those that decrease it, as well as development of an intervention program for the emotional load that accompanies WPV. To prevent workplace violence in healthcare settings, it is equally vital to implement policies that supplement the existing call to action.