Verbal abuse of staff nurses by physicians

The prevalence and consequences of verbal abuse of staff nurses by physicians were examined in the context of Lazarus' stress-coping model. Of the 130 staff nurses completing a mailed Verbal Abuse Questionnaire, 90 per cent reported experiencing at least one episode of verbal abuse during the past year. The average number of reported incidents during the year was between 6 and 12. The most frequent and most stressful types of verbal abuse came in the forms of abusive anger, ignoring, and condescension. Nurses tended to interpret the abuse in an adaptive fashion, e.g., they viewed the abusing physician as someone with a problem and perceived themselves as not deserving the abuse. They used a variety of adaptive palliative as well as problem-focused coping skills. The most severe long-term effects of verbal abuse were a negative relationship with the offending physician and negative effects on job satisfaction. These findings show clearly that verbal abuse of nurses by physicians continues to exist and is associated with negative consequences on their personal as well as professional well-being. Nurse and physician educators as well as nurse administrators must address this problem through educational activities as well as protective hospital policies.