Predictors of Workplace Violence Against Nurses Working at A Tertiary Hospital in Kisumu, Kenya

Résumé

Context: Workplace violence (WPV) is any act in which a person is abused, threatened, intimidated, or assaulted in their work environment. It could involve physical, verbal, or written threatening behaviour or physical attacks. Workplace violence against nurses is increasingly becoming a major problem globally. Because of the nature of their work, nurses are at increased risk of workplace violence.

Aim: To assess predictors of workplace violence against nurses working at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital.

Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional study design among 184 nurses randomly selected from Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital in Kisumu, Kenya. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire with questions regarding sociodemographic characteristics, nature of their work, experience with workplace violence, and institutional factors that could be associated with workplace violence.

Results: The nurses had a mean age of 37±9.5 years, with 62% being female. The majority (88%; n=162) were primary care nurses, 2(1.1%) were supervisors, and 20(10.9%) were in senior management. Workplace violence was reported by 70% of respondents working in the general surgery department (p<0.001). The presence of safety measures (p = 0.020), workplace violence measures (p<0.001), and the effectiveness of workplace violence management (p = 0.009) were significantly associated with a reduced risk of workplace violence.

Conclusion: The study found a high prevalence of WPV among nurses working at a teaching hospital in Western Kenya. Working in the general surgery department, without adequate safety measures, significantly increased the risk of WPV. There is a need to understand institutional processes, procedures, and operations that reduce the likelihood of workplace violence in other hospital departments and apply these findings to the general surgery unit, where there was a higher prevalence of workplace violence.