Violence against health workforce in Bangladesh: a call for action

Hossain, Mahbub; Sultana, Abida; Shaha, Tanmoy; Rahman, Zillur; Nirob, Mohibur Hossain; Yasmeen, Sharmeen

doi:10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20181739

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…31 As a consequence of these violent outbursts, many health care professionals were brutally injured, and few even lost their lives. 32 India has a high burden of WPV similar to other LMICs. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has reported that 75% of doctors face either physical or verbal abuse at some point of their career.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

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Prevalence, Characteristics, and Associated Factors of Workplace Violence Against Healthcare Professionals in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Hossain

Sharma

Tasnim

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Workplace violence (WPV) against doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals is a growing public health concern affecting health systems in low- and middle-income countries. In India, incidents of WPV against health workforce have become common in recent years. However, there is no synthesized evidence on the nationwide burden of WPV in healthcare. This study aims to systematically evaluate the current evidence on the prevalence, characteristics, and associated factors of WPV against healthcare professionals in India. Methods: We systematically searched seven major databases and additional sources to retrieved published literature on WPV in India. We included empirical studies without any time restriction, which reported the prevalence of WPV against healthcare professionals in India. Following data extraction, we estimated the pooled prevalence of WPV using random-effects model in meta-analysis. The characteristics and associated factors of WPV were narratively synthesized from these empirical studies. Results: Among 1065 articles retrieved from multiple sources, 15 studies met our inclusion and exclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of WPV among 2849 participants in those 15 studies was 63% (95% confidence interval [CI], 54%-72%). In the subgroup analyses, the pooled prevalence for male and female was 64% (95% CI, 51%-78%) and 54% (95% CI, 47%-62%) respectively. Moreover, pooled prevalence in 12-months and lifetime was 55% (95% CI, 43%-67%) and 69% (95% CI, 61%-78%) respectively. Among the participants, the prevalence of verbal violence (52%; 95% CI, 45%-60%) was higher than physical violence (8%; 95% CI, 5%-11%). The emergency department was a common location of WPV, whereas the patients' attendants were perpetrators in most studies. Major factors associated with WPV included ineffective patient-provider communication, less experience of the healthcare professionals, overcrowding, shortage of resources, long waiting hours, lack of security measures, dissatisfaction about health services, high cost of care, the negative role of media, and other socio-behavioral problems among the patients and healthcare professionals. Conclusion: WPV is highly prevalent among healthcare professionals in India. Critical challenges within the healthcare and social context necessitate further research, better policymaking, and multipronged interventions to address the same and prevent WPV against healthcare professionals in India.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…31 As a consequence of these violent outbursts, many health care professionals were brutally injured, and few even lost their lives. 32…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence, Characteristics, and Associated Factors of Workplace Violence Against Healthcare Professionals in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Hossain

Sharma

Tasnim

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

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“…The family member accused the doctor of malpractice when the patient died under the doctor’s care ( Prothomalo, 2020 ). Although a few researchers have started to address the issue of WPV in non-western contexts, no studies have yet been conducted to investigate the nature, causes, or impacts of WPV within Bangladesh ( Khan et al, 2010 ; Hossain et al, 2018 ). The current study aimed to compile incidents of WPV shared by Bangladeshi doctors in an existing large social media forum for doctors, called “Platform.” Findings from this study can help generate information on catalysts of WPV and guide policies and interventions to prevent such events.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Workplace Violence Against Doctors in Bangladesh: A Content Analysis

et al. 2021

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Workplace violence in healthcare settings is a common global problem, including in Bangladesh. Despite the known presence of workplace violence in healthcare environments of developing countries, there is limited understanding of factors that lead to hospital violence in Bangladesh. This study aims to explore factors that influence incidents of violence against healthcare professionals in Bangladesh, as reported by doctors via social media forum. Content analysis was conducted on 157 reported incidents documented on “Platform,” the online social media most used by medical students and doctors in Bangladesh. Posts by doctors detailing experiences of physical or verbal violence at their workplace between July 2012 and December 2017 were included in this study. The majority of reported incidents were reported by male doctors (86%) and from government hospitals (63.7%). Findings showed that primary healthcare centers experienced more violence than secondary and tertiary facilities. This may largely be due to insufficient human and other resources in primary care settings to meet patient demand and expectations. Most of the events happened at night (61%), and as a result, entry-level doctors such as emergency duty doctors and intern doctors were commonly affected. Six themes were identified as vital factors in workplace violence against doctors: patients’ perspectives, delayed treatment, power practice, death declarations, extreme violence, and care-seeking behaviors. Most incidents fell under the categories of delayed treatment and power practice at 26.8 and 26.1%, respectively. This study identified possible factors for reported violence in hospital settings. To address and reduce these incidents, hospital administrators should be aware of risk factors for violent behavior and design appropriate measures to prevent workplace violence. Further qualitative and quantitative research is needed to appropriately address the consequences of violence on healthcare workers and implement measures to mitigate these events.

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“Working in the Dark”: Experiences of Frontline Health Workers in Bangladesh During COVID-19 Pandemic

Pooja¹,

Nandonik²,

Ahmed³

et al. 2022

JMDH

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Frontline health workers (FHW) are working relentlessly to combat the COVID-19 pandemic globally. This is particularly challenging for low-and middle-income countries such as Bangladesh because of resource scarcity. Therefore, it is critical to understand the challenges of healthcare providers to help shaping a contextual pandemic response plan address current and future similar crises. Aim: This study aimed to describe the challenges faced by FHWs in Bangladesh in terms of information on COVID-19, managing patients with COVID-19, and what motivated them to continue providing service during the pandemic. Methods: This qualitative study explored the experiences of 18 FHWs who were purposely recruited from different health interventions of a development organization in Bangladesh. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted during July-August 2020 using a semi-structured interview guide. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and content analysis was used to analyze the data which led to four categories. Results: Four main categories and ten sub-categories emerged from the analysis. Categories derived from the analysis were as follows: i) experiences of the FHWs regarding information on COVID-19: "Working in the dark", ii) experience of providing care: "Patients are grateful", iii) impact on personal/family life: "Life is still in lockdown" and iv) motivation to carry on providing care. Conclusion: FHWs desire a stable information source to prepare themselves for future health care crises. Organizational support is essential for them to overcome physical and mental struggles and keep themselves motivated to continue service provision during pandemics.

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Violence against health workforce in Bangladesh: a call for action

Cited by 3 publications

References 3 publications

Prevalence, Characteristics, and Associated Factors of Workplace Violence Against Healthcare Professionals in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Prevalence, Characteristics, and Associated Factors of Workplace Violence Against Healthcare Professionals in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Workplace Violence Against Doctors in Bangladesh: A Content Analysis

“Working in the Dark”: Experiences of Frontline Health Workers in Bangladesh During COVID-19 Pandemic

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