Violence Against Healthcare Professionals: A Retrospective Review of a University Hospital in Turkey

Year 2025, Volume: 32

Ali Kaplan , Merve Ataç Öksüz

Abstract

Objective: Workplace violence (WPV) against healthcare professionals (HCPs) is increasing globally. This study retrospectively examines White Code Records (WCR) of WPV cases reported at a university hospital in Turkey.
Material and Method: The study analyzed 106 WCR cases recorded between January 2018 and September 2024. Data included the content and timing of violent incidents, along with demographic details of HCPs and perpetrators. Descriptive statistics, Monte-Carlo simulation, and Fisher's exact test were used to understand the differences by years and logistic regression was used to analyze the conditions affecting the type of violence.
Results: The analysis revealed that the highest incidence of violence occurred in 2022 (25.5%), coinciding with the post-COVID-19 period. Verbal violence was predominant, comprising 83% of cases. WPV incidents were most frequently reported in outpatient polyclinics and imaging departments (42.5%). More than half of the cases (55.7%) occurred in the second half of the year, with 68.9% taking place during daytime hours. Behavioral problems of perpetrators were identified as the leading cause (39.6%) of violent events.
Healthcare professionals involved in the incidents had an average age of 31 ± 6.55 years, with 61.3% being female. A majority (67.9%) of HCPs had postgraduate education, with physicians constituting a significant proportion. The average age of perpetrators was 40.1 ± 12.2 years, and 68.9% were male. Notably, 67% of the perpetrators were relatives of patients. Statistically significant year-by-year variations were observed in the type of violence reported. Variables such as daytime incidents, HCP education levels, and perpetrator gender significantly influenced the type of violence (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: The findings reveal key trends in WPV in healthcare, with incidents primarily caused by behavioral issues of male relatives of patients. Most affected HCPs are young, female, and physicians. This suggests that gender norms influence violence in healthcare.

Keywords

workplace violence, verbal violence, healthcare workers, physicians, nurses

Ethical Statement

The Ethics Committee of Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University Institute of Postgraduate Education granted approval for this clinical research on April 28, 2022, with the decision number 09/52. As suitable for GDPR principles, the data were protected by masking.

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