Using database reports to reduce workplace violence: Perceptions of hospital stakeholders

Subtitle:

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Arnetz, Judith E.^{a; b; *} | Hamblin, Lydia^{a; c} | Ager, Joel^a | Aranyos, Deanna^d | Essenmacher, Lynnette^d | Upfal, Mark J.^{d; e} | Luborsky, Mark^{f; g}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA | [b] Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden | [c] Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA | [d] Detroit Medical Center Occupational Health Services, Detroit, MI, USA | [e] Department of Emergency Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA | [f] Institute of Gerontology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA | [g] Department of Neurobiology, Caring Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Judith E. Arnetz, Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Division of Occupational and Environmental Health, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3939 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Tel.: +1 313 577 2015; Fax: +1 313 577 3070; E-mail:jarnetz@med.wayne.edu

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Documented incidents of violence provide the foundation for any workplace violence prevention program. However, no published research to date has examined stakeholders' preferences for workplace violence data reports in healthcare settings. If relevant data are not readily available and effectively summarized and presented, the likelihood is low that they will be utilized by stakeholders in targeted efforts to reduce violence. OBJECTIVE: To discover and describe hospital system stakeholders' perceptions of database-generated workplace violence data reports. PARTICIPANTS: Eight hospital system stakeholders representing Human Resources, Security, Occupational Health Services, Quality and Safety, and Labor in a large, metropolitan hospital system. METHODS: The hospital system utilizes a central database for reporting adverse workplace events, including incidents of violence. A focus group was conducted to identify stakeholders' preferences and specifications for standardized, computerized reports of workplace violence data to be generated by the central database. The discussion was audio-taped, transcribed verbatim, processed as text, and analyzed using stepwise content analysis. RESULTS: Five distinct themes emerged from participant responses: Concerns, Etiology, Customization, Use, and Outcomes. In general, stakeholders wanted data reports to provide ``the big picture,'' i.e., rates of occurrence; reasons for and details regarding incident occurrence; consequences for the individual employee and/or the workplace; and organizational efforts that were employed to deal with the incident. CONCLUSIONS: Exploring stakeholder views regarding workplace violence summary reports provided concrete information on the preferred content, format, and use of workplace violence data. Participants desired both epidemiological and incident-specific data in order to better understand and work to prevent the workplace violence occurring in their hospital system.

Keywords: Health care workers, occupational health, focus groups

DOI: 10.3233/WOR-141887

Journal: Work, vol. 51, no. 1, pp. 51-59, 2015