Citation

Li YL, Li RQ, Qiu D, Xiao SY. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020; 17(1): e17010299.

Affiliation

Department of Social Medicine and Health Management, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha 410078, Hunan, China.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, MDPI: Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

DOI

10.3390/ijerph17010299

PMID

31906306

Abstract

Workplace physical violence against health care professionals perpetrated by patients and visitors has been a persistent problem worldwide. Prevalence estimates varied vastly across studies and there was a lack of quantitative syntheses of prevalence studies. This review aimed to quantify pooled one-year prevalence estimates at the global and regional levels. A systematic literature search was performed in the databases of PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Embase between 1 January 2000 and 8 October 2018. Studies providing information about one-year prevalence of self-reported workplace physical violence against health care professionals perpetrated by patients or visitors were included. Heterogeneity between studies was evaluated using Cochran's chi-squared test (Cochran's Q) and I² values. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression were used to explore heterogeneity. A total of 65 eligible studies reported one-year prevalence estimates for 61,800 health care professionals from 30 countries. The pooled one-year prevalence of workplace physical violence against health care professionals perpetrated by patients or visitors was 19.33% (95% confidence interval (CI): 16.49%-22.53%) and the overall heterogeneity was high across studies. We noted geographic and staff categories variations for prevalence estimates through subgroup analysis. The meta-regression showed that sample size, type of health care setting, and quality score were significant moderators for heterogeneity. One in five health care professionals experienced workplace physical violence perpetrated by patients or visitors worldwide annually. Practical intervention was needed to ensure safety of health care professionals.

Language: en

Keywords

health care professionals; meta-analysis; physical violence; workplace violence