Prevalence of physical and verbal violence against physicians and nurses in primary health care centres, Buraidah, Qassim province

Background: Workplace violence in healthcare settings is a global problem, with negative effects on safety and well-being of health care workers as well as workplace activities. However, there is a lack of studies on workplace violence generally and in Saudi Arabia particularly. Objectives: To estimate the prevalence and determine the demographic and occupational characteristics associated with workplace violence in primary health care centres (PHCCs) in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study including 288 physicians and nurses working at PHCCs in Buraidah city in Qassim region was carried out during June and July, 2021. A semi-structured self-administered questionnaire was used to estimate the frequency, timing, causes, reactions, and consequences of workplace violence in addition to participants' demographic and occupational data. Results: Among 288 study participants, 64.2 % were nurses and 63.7% were females. The mean (+/- SD) age of study participants was 36.7 +/- 8.2 years. History of exposure to workplace violence was mentioned by 41.2% of the participants. The majority (98.2%) of insults were verbal. The offender was a patient in most of the incidents (79.7%). Females represented 63.2% of offenders and those aged between 21 and 45 years represented 72.1% of them. The reasons for the violent event included misunderstanding, unmet service demand, overcrowding, and long waiting time. No action was taken as a reaction to violent event by 56.3% of the victims while reporting to supervisors was mentioned by 34.8% of the respondents. Conclusions: A considerable proportion of physicians and nurses in PHCCs were exposed to violence in the workplace; mainly verbal type. More than half of the violent incidents were not reported. Implementation of an appointment system in PHC settings and increasing awareness of patients regarding their rights and responsibilities is recommended.