Workplace Violence Against Nurses in Psychiatric Hospital Settings: Perspectives from Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: Workplace violence (WPV) has become a world-wide concern. This study aimed to measure the prevalence of WPV among nurses working in psychiatric hospitals in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted at three psychiatric hospitals in Saudi Arabia between March and May 2017. Participants completed a self-reported questionnaire which was used to measure the prevalence and explore the associated factors of WPV. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was also performed. RESULTS: A total of 310 nurses (response rate: 62%) were included in this study. The prevalence of WPV against nurses was 90.3%, of which 57.7% had been exposed to both physical and verbal abuse. More nurses were exposed to WPV during the morning shift than the evening shift (58.4% versus 42.3%). Violent behaviour was exhibited mostly by the patients themselves (81.3%). Over half of the nurses (57.4%) required medical intervention in such cases. The majority of nurses felt either stressed (64.2%) or anxious (53.5%) and 34.2% felt depressed after the incident. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that time of violence, source of violence, patient dissatisfaction with medical care and lack of organisational support for nurses were significantly associated with the occurrence of WPV in psychiatric units. CONCLUSION: WPV has reached an alarming rate among nurses in psychiatric hospitals in Saudi Arabia. It is crucial to invest in the prevention of WPV by constant training of workers and a mutual policy with the police and the civic prosecutor in Saudi Arabia on how to respond to violent psychiatric patients.

Herbal medicines: Saudi population knowledge, attitude, and practice at a glance.

Herbal medicines are widely used in many countries in preventing and treating health disorders. In this study, a multiregional cross-sectional survey, a random sample of 809 adults from Saudi Arabia and territories were used to explore the participants' knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding the use of tradition medicines in Saudi society. Data were collected through direct simple observation, interviews, and structured questionnaires. Observations were made and interviews conducted in public places such as markets and popular schools. The questionnaire included data on sociodemographic such as age and gender and was drafted with optional questions and predefined answer. Data were collected from May 1st to the end of July 2014. Most of the respondents were female (85%). Approximately 70% of participants were found to be highly knowledgeable about the use of herbal medicine. The study found that 88.4% of the respondents stated to have used herbal medicines and 84.3% were interested in traditional recipes. Most of the participants used it for therapeutic reason (88.7%), with a successful effectiveness of 61.2%. In addition, the study found that 48.2% of the participants were taking information from friends and 76% stated that they do not trust the published information in commercial channels. Statistical analysis showed an association between the perception and the demographic data, with an increase in the use of herbal medicines. Because of the increased use of herbal medicine in Saudi Arabia facilitated by perceptions and attitudes of the population, it is important to ensure standardization, stability, and quality control of the use of medicine in Saudi Arabia.

The Impact of Nurse-Led Clinics on the Mortality and Morbidity of Patients with Cardiovascular Diseases: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Nurse-led clinics (NLCs) have been developed in several health specialties in recent years. The aim of this analysis is to summarize and appraise the available evidence about the effectiveness of NLCs on the morbidity and mortality outcomes in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). METHODS: We searched Cochrane databases, MEDLINE, Web of Science, PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, BIOSIS, and bibliography of secondary sources from inception through February 20, 2013. Studies were selected and data were extracted independently by 2 investigators. Eligible studies were randomized trials of NLCs of patients with CVD. Of 56 potentially relevant articles screened initially, 12 trials met the inclusion criteria. The outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, nonfatal myocardial infarction, major adverse cardiac events, revascularization, lipids control, and adherence to antiplatelet medications. We performed random-effects meta-analysis to estimate summary risk ratios and quantified between-studies heterogeneity with the I2 statistic. RESULTS: The 12 trials allocated 4886 patients to NLCs and 4954 patients to usual care. The NLC patients had decreased all-cause mortality (odds ratio, 0.78; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.65-0.95; P < .01) and myocardial infarction (odds ratio, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.39-1.00; P = .05) and had higher adherence to lipid-lowering medication (odds ratio, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.14-2.17; P = .006) compared with controls. They also had increased adherence to antiplatelet therapy compared with controls (odds ratio, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.01-1.98; P = .04). There was no statistically significant difference in the risk of cardiovascular death (odds ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.40-1.15; P = .68), major adverse cardiac events (odds ratio, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.55-1.14; P = .21),or revascularization (odds ratio, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.66-1.16; P = .36) between NLC patients and controls. CONCLUSIONS: The available evidence suggests a favorable effect of NLCs on all-cause mortality, rate of major adverse cardiac events, and adherence to medications in patients with CVD.