Measuring the Risk of Violence Through Health Surveillance

Nicola Magnavita (), Igor Meraglia, Giacomo Viti and Martina Gasbarri
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Nicola Magnavita: Occupational Epidemiology Unit, Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Igor Meraglia: Occupational Epidemiology Unit, Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Giacomo Viti: Occupational Epidemiology Unit, Department of Life Sciences and Public Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Roma, Italy
Martina Gasbarri: Health Surveillance Service, Local Healthcare Unit Roma4, 00053 Civitavecchia, Italy

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 12, 1-23

Abstract: Workplace violence (WV) is a ubiquitous, yet under-reported and under-studied phenomenon. Prevention measures may be ineffective because risk assessment is often based on unvalidated algorithms. After monitoring the risk of WV in a healthcare company for over 20 years, this paper presents the results collected in 2023 and details of the methodology used. Monitoring WV in health surveillance can involve three actions: (1) asking all the workers who attend periodic medical examinations in the workplace whether they have suffered physical aggression, threats, or harassment in the previous year; (2) investigating WV at the end of workplace inspections by setting up participatory ergonomics groups (PEGs) to suggest solutions; (3) investigating the characteristics and consequences of WV through anonymous online questionnaires. In 2023, 6.9% of the healthcare workers (HCWs) reported having experienced one or more physical attacks during the previous year; 12.7% reported having been threatened, and 12.9% reported other types of violent, harassing behavior. The HCWs observed an increase in violence after the pandemic years and, in the PEGs, suggested using different preventive measures in different health departments. The online survey provided further information on the characteristics of WV and its consequences. The risk of WV can be effectively characterized and measured through health surveillance.

Keywords: aggression; harassment; methodology; occupational epidemiology; participatory methods; prevention; risk assessment; risk management; threat; workplace (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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