Emergency Department Violence: A Growing Challenge for Healthcare Workers in Saudi Arabia.

Background Workplace violence in healthcare settings, particularly in emergency departments (EDs), is a critical issue affecting healthcare providers and the quality of patient care. This study's primary aim was to determine the prevalence and types of workplace violence experienced by healthcare workers in Saudi Arabian EDs, assess the physical and psychological consequences of such violence, and explore the factors contributing to its occurrence. Methods Employing a descriptive, cross-sectional research design, the study was conducted in two phases at three hospitals in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia. It targeted ED healthcare workers, including physicians, nurses, and support staff. Data were collected via a questionnaire disseminated through social media, addressing incidents of violence, their nature, and subsequent responses. Results The findings indicate a significant incidence of workplace violence in EDs, predominantly involving verbal abuse and physical aggression, mostly initiated by patients' companions. The majority of these incidents occurred prior to patient-physician interaction, with nurses frequently being the primary victims. Although incidents were more often formally reported than informally, a substantial number remained unreported. There was no significant correlation between the experienced violence and variables like working hours or hospital governance. Conclusion The research highlights the urgent need for effective policies and strategies to mitigate workplace violence in healthcare settings in Saudi Arabia. It emphasizes the necessity of implementing comprehensive violence prevention and intervention programs to ensure a safer working environment for healthcare professionals.

A Nursing Care Model for Surge Capacity Management in Intensive Care Units During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experience From Qatif Central Hospital, Saudi Arabia.

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a surge of critically ill patients requiring intensive care. This posed challenges for healthcare systems in managing increased ICU bed demands with limited resources. Methods A retrospective qualitative review of institutional documents and plans was conducted. Key strategies related to ICU bed expansion, nursing staff classification and training, clinical supervision, and performance evaluation were analyzed. Results Qatif Central Hospital increased ICU beds from 20 to 50 by converting other clinical areas. Nursing staff were categorized based on critical care experience, and additional training was provided to non-ICU nurses. A preceptor-led nursing care model with staff responsibilities was implemented. Periodic evaluations ensured continued competence.  Conclusion The nursing care model at Qatif Central Hospital effectively facilitated ICU surge capacity while maintaining care quality. The model offers a viable framework for other healthcare institutions facing similar challenges. However, the study is limited by its retrospective design and focus on a single institution.

Exploring Missed Nursing Care in the NICU: Perspectives of NICU Nurses in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Health Cluster.

(1) Background: Missed nursing care, an omission error characterized by delayed or omitted nursing interventions, poses significant risks to patients' safety and quality of car.; (2) Methods: This is a quantitative cross-sectional study on 151 nurses who work in NICUs in three main networks in the Eastern Health Province, Saudi Arabia: Dammam (n = 84), Qatif (n = 53), and Jubail (n = 14). The study uses a self-reported questionnaire (MISSCARE) and applies the 5-point Likert Scale. Statistical analysis data were analyzed using SPSS version 23.0. (3) Results: The primary reasons for missed care were shortage of nursing staff and unbalanced patient assignments. Missed nursing care negatively affects job satisfaction and was positively correlated with nurses' intentions to quit their jobs. Inadequate equipment, supplies, and breakdowns in communication between nurses and other healthcare professionals were also significant factors contributing to missed care. (4) Conclusions: Missed nursing care is associated with overwork, nursing shortages, and lower job satisfaction, impacting the quality of care provided in the NICU. Improving working conditions, nurse staffing, and patient assignment planning should be prioritized to address this issue effectively.

Healthcare providers as patients: COVID-19 experience.

There is compelling evidence for the psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and earlier epidemics. However, fewer studies have examined the subjective meaning experience of healthcare providers who have survived COVID-19 as patients. This qualitative study aimed to understand further and describe the life experiences of healthcare providers who have survived COVID-19 as patients in Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using unstructured in-depth individual interviews among n = 10 healthcare providers from public hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Data were analyzed based on a phenomenological approach, which resulted in five themes: (i) physical and psychological signs and symptoms; (ii) self-healing, hiding pain, and family; (iii) fear of complications; (iv) disease stigma & long-term psychological outcomes; (v) emotional support, mental well-being & resignation. The overall synthesis showed that healthcare providers, as patients, experience the same difficulties and stressors as the general public. In some cases, these factors are even worse, as family members, colleagues, and employers develop a new type of stigma. Given the impact of social media and the flow of information of any type, more research is needed to examine the sources used to obtain information by the general public, whether these sources are reliable, and how the public can be taught to use only scientific data and not social data. Understanding the experience of healthcare providers as patients during the pandemic has allowed to look at the feelings and needs of people during illness from a new perspective. As expressed by participants, being a healthcare provider does not reduce the fear of the disease and does not mitigate its consequences in the form of stigmatization and isolation.

Acceptance, Advocacy, and Perception of Health Care Providers on COVID-19 Vaccine: Comparing Early Stage of COVID-19 Vaccination with Latter Stage in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia.

Vaccination of healthcare providers has recently gained focused attention of public health officials. As HCPs have direct contact with the population, and HCPs significantly influence the population, this study aimed to compare the acceptance rate, advocacy rate, and beliefs about the COVID-19 vaccine among HCPs in two time periods. In this repeated cross-sectional study, different HCPs were assessed in two periods ten months apart, i.e., November to December 2020 and September to October 2021, which were before and after COVID-19 vaccine approval by authorities. The study was conducted in Qatif Central Hospital, Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia. There were 609 respondents: 236 participants in the first period and 373 participants in the second period. Only 13 participants did not get the COVID-19 vaccine. There was around a 40% difference in the acceptance rate between the two study periods; the latter period was higher at 94.7%. Furthermore, 24.1% was the difference between the willingness to advocate the COVID-19 vaccine for others; the first period had a lower percentage (60.1%). Overall, results of the study showed that vaccine hesitancy, as well as the willingness to advocate for the vaccine, were improved between the pre-vaccine approval period and post-vaccine approval period, showing that the efforts made by the government improved COVID-19 acceptance and advocacy among HCPs. However, vaccine hesitancy is not a new issue, and for a better understanding of HCPs' beliefs, a qualitative study is needed.

Quality of Nursing Work Life among Nurses in Saudi Arabia: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Quality of working life (QWL) is a multidimensional concept that describes an employee's satisfaction with several work life elements. Quality of nurse working life is considered as a stepping stone for health services improvement, as it affects job satisfaction which, in turn, affects the performance of nurses. Understanding and investigating the nurses' quality of work life in Saudi Arabia is needed for improvement actions. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the quality of nursing work life (QNWL) among nurses working in Saudi Arabia and to determine the association between demographic variables and quality of work life among nurses. Methods: It was a cross-sectional design using Brooks' quality of nursing work life survey. It was distributed among nurses over the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Results: There were 860 nurses participating in the study. The mean total score for the participants was 174.5+/- 30.3, indicating moderate to high QNWL. The highest score achieved by the nurses was for the work world context (4.29) while the lowest score was for work design dimension (3.92). The study revealed that nationality, income, and shift duration, having a dependent person, and having family accompany the nurse as significant factors affecting the quality of work life among the nurses. Conclusion: A novel contribution of the current study was that the demographic characteristics of the participants, including nationality, income, having family accompany the nurse, having an independent child, or spouse or parents, and shift duration, tended to have a statistically significant correlation with QNWL. The comprehensive results of this study have practical implications whereby authority bodies can create regulatory plans for enhancing satisfaction and performance over the sole utilization of job satisfaction measurements and can thereby improve nurses' retention and turnover rates.