WORKPLACE VIOLENCE AND RELATED FACTORS IN OPERATING ROOMS IN IRAN: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

According to the International Labor Organization, the prevalence of workplace
violence has increased in the last decade and of the entire professional groups, health care personnel are
the most likely victims of workplace violence but the documentary information on workplace violence
in the operating room is very limited. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of determining
the frequency of workplace violence and related factors among the health care personnel in operating
rooms.
Materials & Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study. The research sample consisted of
223 health care personnel working in the operating rooms in the educational-medical centers of Isfahan
in Iran. The sampling method was proportional allocation of quota and category. Data were collected
fromMarch to July 2018 using theWHO standard questionnaire “surveillance of workplace violence in
the health sector” whose validity and reliability have been confirmed in previous studies.
Results: The percentage of verbal violence was 91.9 and physical violence and ethnic violence were in
turn 26 and 19.3 during the past 12 months. The most common cause of workplace violence (87persent),
was working in a stressful environment and the perpetrators of workplace violence are often among
health care personnel. The average age and work experience of personnel exposed to verbal violence
were significantly lower than the others (P=0.01and P=0.02, respectively). Frequency of physical
(P=0.03) and verbal (P=0.004) violence in centers with specific protocols for reporting violence were
significantly lower than other centers.
Conclusion: Experience of workplace violence among the health care personnel in the operating rooms
is considerable. The perpetrators of workplace violence are often among health care personnel instead
of patients and their families. This study recommends the existence of documentary protocols for
reporting workplace violence in all operating room