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Global Health Econ Sustain HCWs and violence in emergency services

about the health of their patients. These tensions can lead 3. Results
to disruptive actions such as damaging property, verbally
insulting HCWs and health-care-related individuals in The foundation of this study rested on a survey
the country, and, in extreme cases, resorting to physical answered by 75 doctors and nurses, as illustrated in
violence, including assaults on doctors and nurses (Lubna Figure 1. The study primarily focused on HCWs, with
doctors comprising 12% of the participants and nurses
et al., 2018). In certain foreign countries, things could representing 88%.
get worse, as exemplified by the case of the professor at
Harvard Medical School, Dr. Michael Davidson, who was We formulated questions aimed at elucidating their
shot by a patient’s son who was unsatisfied with the death reactions, experiences of distress with both patients and
of his father (Sai, 2021). patients’ companions, and instances of violence to which
they have been subjected. This sample predominantly
The World Health Organization defines workplace consisted of doctors and nurses who had worked or were
violence as “incidents where staff are abused, threatened, or working in emergency departments or health centers
assaulted in circumstances related to their work, including in Fez, Morocco. They candidly shared their sentiments,
commuting to and from work, involving an explicit or marked by profound sorrow yet imbued with hope for a
implicit challenge to their safety, well-being, or health.” better future.
(Pardeep et al., 2023, p. 786).
The study uncovered that more than 82% of HCWs had
In this study, we aim to discuss aggressive behaviors encountered instances of violence (verbal or corporal).
directed toward HCWs, elucidate the underlying reasons, Figure 2 vividly depicts the extent of congestion within
and illustrate their impact on both HCWs and the the health-care sector and the deteriorating relationship
services provided to patients, who may receive care in a between HCWs and their patients, with a tendency toward
tense environment due to HCWs’ diminished morale and litigious actions (Laude, 2013). This tendency suggests a
psychological well-being (Michelle et al., 2022). While rise in the number of judicial trials against HCWs.
numerous studies have explored this topic, our aim is to
present the authentic situation by featuring firsthand, There are several factors contributing to the congestion
confidential accounts from doctors and nurses who have in hospitals, notably the prevalent prejudicial attitudes
encountered such violence in developing countries such as toward HCWs, along with the disrespect of queuing
etiquette during doctor’s examinations. As depicted in
Morocco.
Figure 3, these two factors collectively account for 55% of
2. Methods the causes of violence against HCWs.
In this study, we adopted a combination of qualitative The consequences of violence against HCWs in
and quantitative methods, using Google Forms for data emergency departments are manifold. Figure 4 delineates
collection and conducting interviews with doctors and the experiences of HCWs in settings and specifies the types
nurses. The study aimed to gather insights from a specific
cohort (doctors and nurses) working within health-care
services characterized by high patient volumes, commonly
referred to as “hot services,” such as emergency departments.

The target population comprised doctors and nurses,
who are the primary HCWs directly encountering
individuals in distress within emergency departments and
health centers. Participants provided their perspectives by
independently responding to survey questions. The study’s
geographical focus primarily encompassed the emergency
departments of hospitals in Fez, Morocco, along with
select health centers situated in densely populated areas
experiencing instances of violence.
For the sample size, we recruited approximately
75 doctors and nurses. Distribution of the survey was Figure 1. The proportion of doctors and nurses recruited in this study.
conducted through various social media platforms Doctors and nurses were the principal subjects of this study, given
their frontline roles in encountering patients and patients’ companions.
(WhatsApp and Messenger) with responses collected using Consequently, they serve as effective indicators of the suffering from the
Google Forms. violence to which they were exposed.

Volume 2 Issue 2 (2024) 2 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.2015