A survey on workplace violence among pre-hospital care personnel in Malaysia

Data on violence experienced by pre-hospital care (PHC) staff in developing countries are lacking. This study investigates incidence, effect, coping reaction, and action taken towards violence received by PHC staff in Malaysia, a developing country.

This is a multi-centred crosssectional survey. Questionnaire modified from the Joint Programme on Workplace Violence in the Healthcare Sector was applied. PHC staff include assistant medical officers, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), nurses, attendants, and ambulance drivers. This questionnaire involves workplace violence (WPV) experienced for 12 months since the beginning of this study among pre-hospital staff of three main hospitals in Klang Valley, Malaysia.

Seventy-one PHC staff personnel responded to this questionnaire. Overall prevalence of at least one WPV incident over past 12 months was 56.3% (95% CI 44.8% to 65.8%). Fifty-three-point-five percent (95% CI 41.9% to 65.1%) experienced verbal abuse, 9.9% (95% CI 3% to 16.8%) experienced physical abuse, and 14.1% (95% CI 6.0% to 22.2%) experienced racial abuse. None of the participants experienced sexual abuse. Out of 38 staff that experienced verbal abuse, 16 (42%) took no action, 8 (21.1%) pretended it never happened, and only 5 (13.2%) filed an actual complaint.

Verbal abuse was found to be the most common type of violence. Younger age group (<29 years) was more exposed to verbal (p = 0.014) and racial abuse (p = 0.007). Majority victims either responded by telling abusers to stop or taking no action at all.