Citation

Lindquist B, Koval K, Mahadevan A, Gennosa C, Leggio W, Niknam K, Rao GVR, Newberry JA, Strehlow M. BMJ Open 2019; 9(11): e033404.

Affiliation

Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/bmjopen-2019-033404

PMID

31772106

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) establish the prevalence of safety threats and workplace violence (WPV) experienced by emergency medical technicians (EMTs) in a low/middle-income country with a new prehospital care system, India and (2) understand which EMTs are at particularly high risk for these experiences. SETTING: EMTs from four Indian states (Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana) were eligible to participate during the study period from July through November 2017.

METHODS: Cross-sectional survey study. PARTICIPANTS: 386 practicing EMTs from four Indian states.

RESULTS: The overall prevalence of any WPV was 67.9% (95% CI 63.0% to 72.5%). The prevalence of physical assault was 58% (95% CI 52.5% to 63.4%) and verbal assault was 59.8% (95% CI 54.5% to 65%). Of physical assault victims, 21.7% were injured and 30.2% sought medical attention after the incident. Further, 57.3% (n=216) of respondents reported they were 'somewhat worried' and 28.4% (n=107) reported they were 'very worried' about their safety at work.

CONCLUSION: WPV and safety fears were found to be common among EMTs in India. Focused initiatives to counter WPV in countries developing prehospital care systems are necessary to build a healthy and sustainable prehospital healthcare workforce.

© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

Language: en

Keywords

accident & emergency medicine; international health services; public health