Background: Workplace violence against emergency department
staff (EDS) is considered one of the most common and widespread
phenomena of violence in the hospital setting.
Purpose: The purpose of this research is to determine the incidence
ofworkplace violence and the predictors of violent behavior
against EDS working at hospitals in Jordan.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to investigate the
workplace violence experiences of a convenience sample of 355
EDS working at 8 government-run and 4 privately run Jordanian
hospitals. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire
that was developed for this study.
Results: Nearly three quarters (72%) of participants reported being
exposed to violent acts. Patients and their relativeswere identified
as themain perpetrators of this violence. The contributing factors
to workplace violence identified by the participants included overcrowding,
lack of resources, staff shortages, and the absence of
effective antiviolence policies.
Conclusions/Implications for Practice: Policies and legislation
related to workplace violence should be instituted and developed.
Furthermore, EDS should be trained to dealwith violent incidents
and to understand violence management policies.
KEY WORDS:
Jordan, emergency staff department, policy, workplace
violence, community health