Violence at work and its relationship with burnout, depression and anxiety in healthcare professionals of the emergency services

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the possi- ble relationship between physical and psycho- logical aggression suffered in the workplace and professional burnout, depression and anxiety suffered by healthcare professionals of the emergency services. Methods: 315 physicians, nurses, orderlies and ambulance drivers of Cri- tical Care and Emergency Devices (CCED) in the Andalusian Public Health System, in the pro- vince of Granada (Spain) participated. They were interviewed about the exposure to violence at work and answered a battery of questions that measured burnout, depression and anxiety. Re- sults: Physical aggression was significantly re- lated to emotional exhaustion, personal accom- plishment at work, depression and anxiety. Psy- chological aggression was associated with personal accomplishment. Logistic regression showed that the CCED professionals who have suffered physical aggression were 4.2 and 2.6 times more likely to have suffered anxiety and reduced personal accomplishment, respectively, than those who did not suffer physical aggres- sion. On the other hand, feelings of anxiety and reduced personal accomplishment increase the professionals’ risk (3.4 and 2.1 times more likely, respectively) of suffering from physical aggres- sion. Conclusion: The results suggest that ex- posure to violence is related to the other psy- chological problems tested: emotional exhaus- tion and personal accomplishment (two com- ponents of burnout), depression and anxiety. In addition, physical violence is a risk factor for anxiety and diminished personal accomplish- ment of the CCED professionals.