Violence and verbal abuse against staff in accident and emergency departments: a survey of consultants in the UK and the Republic of Ireland

OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence of verbal abuse and physical violence in accident and emergency (A&E) departments and to discover the extent of provision of security measures and instructions for staff on how to deal with these problems. DESIGN: A postal questionnaire. SETTING: A&E departments in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. SUBJECTS: Two hundred and seventy three consultants named in charge of 310 departments. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Frequency of physical violence and verbal abuse, injuries sustained, perceived precipitating factors, security measures instituted, and legal action taken. RESULTS: Two hundred and thirty three replies were received. Alcohol, waiting times, recreational drug usage, and patients' expectations were perceived as the chief causes. Patients were the chief perpetrators with nurses being the commonest victims. Staff sustained 10 fractures, 42 lacerations, and 505 soft tissue injuries. There were 298 arrests and 101 court appearances that resulted in 76 convictions. Panic buttons and video cameras were the most common security measures. CONCLUSIONS: Staff within A&E departments are regularly abused, both verbally and physically. Inner city departments appear to be most affected. Documentation is poor. Perpetrators are seldom convicted. There do appear to be actions which hospitals could undertake that might help to ameliorate these problems.