Introduction Inpatient aggression poses consistent complications for psychiatric hospitals. It can affect patient and staff safety, morale, and quality of care. Research on staff attitudes toward patient aggression is sparse. Purpose The study explored staff attitudes toward patient aggression by hospital position types and years of experience in a psychiatric hospital. We predicted that staff experiencing patient aggression would be related to working in less trained positions, having less psychiatric work experience, and demonstrating attitudes that were consistent with attributes internal to the patient and not external. Methods Fifty-one percent completed online survey using Management of Aggression and Violence Attitude Scale, along with demographics, years of work experience, and number of times staff experienced aggressive event. Results Management of Aggression and Violence Attitude Scale scores, staff position types, and years of experience were related to the number of aggressive interactions. Nurses and psychiatric technicians reported highest number of exposures to patient aggression, followed by physicians; however, support staff reported less patient aggression. More years worked in a psychiatric hospital was associated with more aggressive experience. Conclusion Nurses, psychiatric technicians, and physicians reported greater exposure to patients’ aggression than support staff. Training programs, developed specifically to individual position types, focusing on recognition of sources of aggression, integrated into staff training, might reduce patient on staff aggression in psychiatric hospitals.

Introduction Physical assaults perpetrated by patients in psychiatric hospitals against mental health staff (MHS) is a serious concern facing psychiatric hospitals. Assaulted staff reports physical and psychological trauma that affects their personal and professional lives. There is a dearth of literature exploring this phenomenon. Purpose To explore MHS perspectives of assault by psychiatric patients. Methods A transcendental phenomenological qualitative design was used to explore and analyze the perspectives of a purposeful sample of 120 MHS perspectives at an acute inpatient psychiatric hospital. Participants’ age ranged from 22 to 63 years (mean age = 32.4). Moustakas’ theoretical underpinnings guided the study. Results Two patterns, 8 themes, and 19 subthemes were identified: (a) Psychological impacts revealed four themes—increase of anxiety/fear level, helplessness and hopelessness, flashbacks/burnout, and doubting own competency. (b) Physiosocial impacts revealed four themes—unsupportive superiors, stigmatization of staff victim, failure to report the incident, and environmental safety. Discussion Participants verbalized that assaults by patients have instilled fear and trauma in them. Most of the assaults occurred when staff were performing their routine job functions and setting limits to patient’s behavior. Conclusion The study allowed MHS opportunities to narrate their lived experiences of being assaulted by patients and provided validation of their perspectives. Findings illuminated the phenomenon and may help to support policy changes in psychiatric hospitals.