Staff injuries after patient-staff incidences in psychiatric acute wards

The aim of the study was to describe the pattern of injuries to various body parts in patient-staff incidents; 507 patient-staff incidents in a psychiatric acute ward during the period 1990-1997 were included. Staff members registered 193 injuries in the head, 112 in the trunk, 265 in the upper extremities and 69 in the lower extremities. No differences between the two sexes or between different levels of education among the nurses were found in the pattern of injuries. Doctors were more often injured in the head and less often injured in the upper extremity than the nurses. The head was more often injured when there was no understandable provocation before the incident and seldom injured when the patients were denied something. Injuries to the trunk were more frequently followed by use of parenteral medication. Parenteral medication and holding the patient with force were more frequently used in incidents where more than one body part was injured. The knowledge of injures after patient-staff incidences may contribute to the education and protective training of the staff of psychiatric acute wards.