A MULTIREGIONAL STUDY OF NURSES BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES ABOUT WORK SAFETY AND PATIENT ASSAULT

Objective: The study attempted to increase understanding of nursing st aff members' beliefs and concerns about work safety and patient assaul t. Methods: A study conducted at a university-affiliated psychiatric f acility in California in the late 1980s was replicated in five other p sychiatric settings. Data were collected using the Attitudes Toward Pa tient Physical Assault Questionnaire, containing 31 statements designe d to elicit nurses' beliefs about safety concerns, staff performance, and legal issues related to assaults. Results: A total of 557 nursing staff members at the six sites responded to the questionnaire; 84 perc ent were female. The majority (76 percent) had been physically assault ed at least once, but 71 percent reported feeling safe in their work e nvironment most of the time. Compared with female staff members, males tended to believe that assaults were to be expected, that assaulted s taff have personality traits that make them vulnerable to assault, and that legal action against assaultive patients might jeopardize their jobs. Recently hired staff were more confident that their facilities d id not admit unmanageable patients and that the environment was adequa te to prevent assaults. Staff who had been assaulted more frequently t ended to believe that assaults were to be expected. Conclusions: The s tudy highlights a nationwide concern among nursing staff about safety. Ensuring a safe working environment requires better training, more ad equate staffing, and a security plan to protect staff, patients, and o thers.