NCT06933433

Assaults Against Health Care Professionals in a Tertiary Intensive Care Unit

A Retrospective Analysis of Assaults Against Health Care Professionals in a Tertiary Intensive Care Unit

• Status: Active Not Recruiting
• Phase: —
• Study type: Observational
• Enrollment: 865 (actual)
• Sponsor: University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This study aims to investigate the occurrence of workplace violence, both physical, verbal, and sexual assaults, from patients and their relatives towards intensive care unit staff members.

Detailed description

Workplace violence, as defined by the International Labor Organization, includes any action, incident, or behavior that assaults, threatens, harms, or injures a person during their work. Healthcare workers face the highest risk of workplace violence among all professions. Violence can take many forms, including verbal abuse, physical offenses to sexual harassment. While most research focuses on psychiatric and emergency departments, workplace violence in intensive care units (ICUs) is understudied and often underreported. As a result, little is known about its prevalence and risk factors, leading to a lack of awareness and effective prevention strategies. The aim of this retrospective single-center cohort study is to investigate the occurrence of workplace violence, both physical, verbal, and sexual assaults, from patients and their relatives towards ICU staff members. The study will assess the frequency, characteristics, and circumstances of these events in an intensive care setting. Additionally, the consequences of such incidents and the measures taken afterward will be examined. This analysis aims to identify potential risk factors and possible targets for intervention, ultimately contributing to the development and implementation of protocols that enhance the safety of both healthcare professionals and patients.

Conditions

• Assault

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-03-01
• Primary completion: 2025-12-01
• Completion: 2025-12-01
• First posted: 2025-04-18
• Last updated: 2025-04-18

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Switzerland