Approaches to Studying Patient Assault
Abstract
Western Journal of Nursing Research, 1986, 8(3), 321-328 Approaches to Studying Patient Assault Marilyn Lewis Lanza Patient assault is receiving increased recognition as a problem with which nurses must deal. Patient assault is defined in this article as an event in which a patient deliberately inflicts physical harm upon a nurse. A number of studies have addressed the problem from the dual perspec- tives of documenting the frequency of assault and victim reactions to assault. Lion, Snyder, and Merrill (1981) suggest that the assault rate upon nursing staff is higher than generally believed. A study was made of all formal incident reports filled out by personnel at a local state hospital containing 1500 patients and 800 nursing staff. During one year, 203 assaults upon staff members were reported. The authors estimated five times as many assaults were unreported. Reasons given for not report- ing assaults include the effort required, staff inurement to violent patients, and the view that such assaults represent a performance failure. A fourth reason suggested was the fear of an investigation to see if the staff member hit the patient in self-defense. Reactions of the nurse victims to patient assault include emotional, cognitive, social, and