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48/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 48 out of 100. Prevention and risk

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

Background Workplace violence (WPV) against health professionals is a global problem with an increasing incidence. The aims of this study were as follows: 1) to examine the frequency and characteristics of WPV in different settings and professionals of a general hospital and 2) to identify the clinical and organizational factors related to this phenomenon. Methods The study was cross-sectional. In a 1-month period, we administered the "Violent Incident Form" to 745 professionals (physicians, head nurses, nurses, nursing assistants), who worked in 15 wards of a general hospital in northern Italy. Results With a response rate of 56%, 45% of professionals reported WPV. The most frequently assaulted were nurses (67%), followed by nursing assistants (18%) and physicians (12%). The first two categories were correlated, in a statistically significant way, with the risk of WPV ( P =0.005, P =0.004, multiple logistic regression). The violent incidents more frequently occurred in psychiatry department (86%), emergency department (71%), and in geriatric wards (57%). The assailants more frequently were males whereas assaulted professionals more often were females. Men committed physical violence more frequently than women, in a statistically significant way ( P =0.034, chi-squared test). Verbal violence (51%) was often committed by people in a lucid and normal state of consciousness; physical violence (49%) was most often perpetrated by assailants affected by dementia, mental retardation, drug and substance abuse, or other psychiatric disorders. The variables positively related to WPV were "calling for help during the attack" and "physical injuries suffered in violent attack" ( P =0.02, P =0.03, multiple logistic regression). Conclusion This study suggests that violence is a significant phenomenon and that all health workers, especially nurses, are at risk of suffering aggressive assaults. WPV presented specific characteristics related to the health care settings, where the aggression occurred. Prevention programs tailored to the different care needs are necessary to promote professional awareness for violence risk.

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APA 7th

Ferri, P., Silvestri, M., Artoni, C., & Di Lorenzo, R. (2016). Workplace violence in different settings and among various health professionals in an Italian general hospital: a cross-sectional study. Psychology research and behavior management. https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s114870

Vancouver

Ferri P, Silvestri M, Artoni C, Di Lorenzo R. Workplace violence in different settings and among various health professionals in an Italian general hospital: a cross-sectional study. Psychology research and behavior management. 2016. doi:10.2147/prbm.s114870. PMID: 27729818.

BibTeX

@article{ferri2016-27729818,
  author  = {Ferri, P. and Silvestri, M. and Artoni, C. and Di Lorenzo, R.},
  title   = {{Workplace violence in different settings and among various health professionals in an Italian general hospital: a cross-sectional study}},
  journal = {Psychology research and behavior management},
  year    = {2016},
  doi     = {10.2147/prbm.s114870},
  pmid    = {27729818},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.2147/prbm.s114870}
}

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Key findings

Results With a response rate of 56%, 45% of professionals reported WPV.
The first two categories were correlated, in a statistically significant way, with the risk of WPV ( P =0.005, P =0.004, multiple logistic regression).
Men committed physical violence more frequently than women, in a statistically significant way ( P =0.034, chi-squared test).
Conclusion This study suggests that violence is a significant phenomenon and that all health workers, especially nurses, are at risk of suffering aggressive assaults.

Why it matters

This study is about workplace violence against hospital staff and has no relevance to treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's disease. It reports no Alzheimer's disease outcome.

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Study details

Study designcross-sectional
Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 48/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Psychology research and behavior management)
Journal's citation record	1 / 4	Psychology Research and Behavior Management: journal h-index 84 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	4 / 12	A snapshot of people at one point in time
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2016 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	0 / 4	Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	0 / 3	Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Randomised / blinded	0 / 2	No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	5 / 7	Cited 283 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	4 / 5	23.6 citations a year over 12 year(s) since 2016
Impact for its field and year	6 / 6	Cited 41.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	0 / 6	No other study in this library cites it
Still being cited	3 / 4	Cited 81 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	2 / 4	Last-listed author Rosaria Di Lorenzo: h-index 23 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	0 / 3	University of Modena and Reggio Emilia: institution h-index 547 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	0 / 3	OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete)
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 27729818)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	48 / 100	—

What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →

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