Citation

Carver M, Beard H. Emerg. Nurse 2021; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, RCN Publishing)

DOI

10.7748/en.2021.e2094

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Half of all reported violent incidents in healthcare settings occur in the emergency department (ED), so ED nurses are disproportionately affected by violence and aggression. Violence and aggression can cause physical injury, psychological harm, delays to patient care, eroded staff morale, increased sick leave and low staff retention. This article explores potential causes and risk factors for violent or aggressive behaviour from patients and visitors in the ED. It discusses risk assessment tools, management approaches and risk reduction strategies that can be used in the ED to tackle violence and aggression. The article also features a case study describing a successful small-scale trial of body-worn cameras at an East London ED.

Language: en

Keywords

aggression; patients; accident and emergency; emergency care; patient behaviour; staff welfare; violence at work; workforce