Trajectories of the current situation and characteristics of workplace violence among nurses: a nine-year follow-up study.

BACKGROUND Workplace violence (WPV) among nurses has become an increasingly serious public health issue worldwide. Investigating the status quo and characteristics of WPV among nurses in different time periods can help hospital managers understand the current status of WPV and its trends over time. This study aimed to understand the current situation of WPV among nurses in Suzhou general hospitals from 2010 to 2019 and analyze changes over time. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate 942, 2,110 and 2,566 nurses in 6 fixed polyclinic hospitals in Suzhou in 2010, 2015 and 2019, respectively. This study used the revised version of the hospital WPV questionnaire. The count data are described as frequencies and percentages, and the measurement data are represented as means and standard deviations. The general data of nurses during different time periods, the incidence of WPV, nurses' cognition and attitudes toward WPV and the attitudes and measures of hospitals regarding WPV were analyzed by the chi-square test. RESULTS The incidence of WPV among nurses in Suzhou general hospitals in 2015 (69.0 %) and in 2019 (68.4 %) was higher than the incidence of 62.4 % in 2010 (P<0.05), and there were significant differences among periods in the specific types of violence (P˂0.05). Nurses who participated in the surveys in 2015 and 2019 scored higher on "having heard of WPV before", "thinking WPV coping management organizations are needed" and "supporting a zero-tolerance policy" than those who participated in 2010 (P<0.05). The attitudes and responses of hospitals with regard to WPV among nurses have greatly improved, as evidenced by the results for the items "offering training", "encouraging reporting of WPV to supervisors", "equipped with a WPV managing department", "handling WPV efficiently" and "hospital's attitudes" (P<0.005). CONCLUSIONS Despite an increase in nurses' awareness and attitudes regarding WPV and significant improvements in hospitals' attitudes and responses to WPV, the incidence of WPV remains high. Hospitals should continue to explore scientific training modes that are in accordance with the needs of nurses to reduce the incidence of WPV.