THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PHYSICAL AND VERBAL ABUSE AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH STATUS AMONG SAUDI HOSPITAL NURSES

Abstract

Background: Recently, there were significant challenges in the health care system, including abuse among nurses. This concern has sought more attention because of its negative consequences on the organization, the nurses' psychological health status, and the delivery of care to the patients. Objectives: This study primarily aimed to determine the presence of physical and verbal abuse and its effect on the nurses' mental health status. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to determine the incidence of abuse experienced or witnessed by nurses in the Hafer-Albatain City of Saudi Arabia. Three hundred seventy nurses were recruited from five hospitals and voluntarily answered a standardized questionnaire about physical and verbal abuse, depression, anxiety, and stress. Data gathering was completed from January to March 2019. Data analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences Ver. 21. Results: The study's findings showed that nurses commonly experienced verbal abuse (52.7%) compared to physical abuse (34.3%). Regarding mental health status, results showed that anxiety and depression were higher than stress, respectively. However, 21.4% have mild stress, 32.7% have moderate anxiety, and 27.6% have mild depression. Conclusion: The study proved that reported physical abuse (66.40%) is significantly attributed to hospital conditions variations. The variance is even higher when associated with reported cases of verbal abuse (98.4%). Among the three mental health status components, only stress was found significantly correlated with the hospital setting and job experience.