Workplace Violence and Worker Well-Being: A Preliminary Cross-Sectional Study.

PURPOSE: To investigate the prevalence of workplace violence (WPV) in home health care and long-term care facilities (LTCFs) and explore the relationship between WPV and worker well-being.

METHOD: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with health care workers in an agency that provided care in homes or LTCFs. Six measures of worker well-being were collected: satisfaction with work and life, work-related rumination, work/family conflict, burnout, and turnover intention. Surveys also assessed type and frequency of WPV.

RESULTS

Seventeen participants completed surveys. Verbal abuse by patients was the most often experienced type of WPV. Employees who reported experiencing WPV had higher burnout and lower satisfaction with work and life.

CONCLUSION

WPV routinely occurs in home health care and LTCFs and appears to be related to worker well-being. Facility managers who can control WPV will likely impact the well-being of employees. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 50(11), 44-52.].