[Assessing aggressive behaviour at the psychiatric emergency service with a checklist: a replication study]

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Emergency Medicine
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Previous research indicated the Checklist of Risks/ Crisis team (CRC) could predict aggressive patient behavior.
• A need for a larger, replicated study to validate these initial findings was identified.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate circumstances surrounding patient contact with crisis teams.
• To assess the predictive validity of the CRC for aggressive behavior.

Main Methods:

• The CRC was completed by staff before community outreach visits over four years (2006-2009).
• Aggressive incidents during visits were documented using the Staff Observation Aggression Scale-Revised (SOAS-r).

Main Results:

• The CRC's visual analogue scale (VAS) and an item on dangerous persons in the vicinity predicted future aggression.
• Correct classification rates for aggression prediction were 91% and 92%, respectively.

Conclusions:

• The CRC, SOAS-r, and regular incident discussions are valuable for analyzing incidents and improving staff safety.
• Implemented methods correlated with a reduction in aggressive acts against psychiatric emergency services staff.