Patient Violence Toward Psychiatric Health Care Workers in Israel as Viewed Through Incident Reports

Rates of violence perpetrated by patients toward health care workers are known to be higher in psychiatry than in other fields. Objective standardized reports of violent incidents may clarify this phenomenon.

The purpose of this study was to assess the characteristics of patient violence, as evident from objective reports.

In this retrospective chart review study, conducted at a large mental health hospital in Israel between 2013 and 2015, reports of violent incidents perpetrated by people diagnosed with mental health problems against health care workers of the hospital were reviewed.

A total of 80 violent incidents were recorded. The findings outline the characteristics of a typical assailant, a typical victim, and a typical incident, and demonstrate associations between some of these characteristics.

This information may be beneficial for planning interventions for efficient coping with and prevention of violence at psychiatric inpatient facilities.