Understanding Horizontal Violence in Nursing

Introduction

Nurses are professionals who, besides the caring personality, possess a great deal of patience, loyalty and strong work ethic; however, not all nurses adhere to the standard of ethic in their practice. Inappropriate, aggressive behavior among nurses, which earlier was known as “nurses eat their young”, in todays’ nursing draws particular attention of the health care managers and policy makers under the term of horizontal workplace violence. Among other challenges, which contemporary nursing faces daily, the significance of horizontal violence, or bulling, is in its detrimental effects on the quality of nursing care, workplace satisfaction, workforce retention and the health of nurses (Vessey, DeMarco, & DiFazio, 2011). Knowing

Aggressive behaviors can be displayed in form of emotional, verbal or physical abuse, sarcastic remarks, unreasonable criticism, ignoring or withholding important information. Workplace violence leads to disrupted communication within the health care team, which, in turn puts the quality of nursing care and clients’ safety at risk. Decreased level of job satisfaction of workers in violent environment leads to increased turnover of nurses, resulting in understaffing and reduced quality of health care services. The victims of workplace violence report emotional exhaustion fear of coming to work, anxiety and depression; they are often pushed to leave the job or, even, the nursing profession. Research indicates that workplace violence is often left unreported; therefore, it is important to implement effective measures on prevention and elimination of workplace violence. Educational programs are essential to promote knowledge and understanding among nurses about workplace violence and strategies for workplace violence prevention. Health care organizations should be guided by established policy which highlights the responsibility of all leaders and employees to be accountable for workplace behavior, and implement a procedure on reporting, documenting and addressing the incidents of workplace violence. Organizations need to turn against horizontal violence, educate employees, and foster a healthy workplace environment which is safe for clients and