Workplace violence among pharmacists

Abstract

Introduction. The pharmacist, along with the medical staff, was identified as having a high risk of violence at work. With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the new developmental features of the pharmaceutical industry, it has become necessary to adapt to a new workplace environment. However, pharmacists continue to face violence that is caused by various factors: long waits for service, working alone, poor environmental design, inadequate security or providing services for patients who have a history of violence, abuse drugs or alcohol. Aim of study. To evaluate workplace violence before and during the COVID pandemic and understand the existing types of violence prevention strategies. Methods and materials. A cross-sectional descriptive study was initiated among 112 pharmacists aged 20 to > 60 years in the period of February 2022, with application of the on-line questionnaire "Surveillance of workplace violence among pharmacists" consisting of 3 sections (general information, the worst event in your experience, prevention strategies). Results. Of the total number of participants in this study, women represent 88.2% with a work experience of more than 11 years. Pharmacists (70.6%) spend most of their working time in retail settings. During the pre-Covid period, most of the interviewed pharmacists – 76.5% faced threats or verbal aggression during work. Instead, in the pandemic this rate was lower (67.6%). The number of thefts or attempted thefts in the pre-Covid period was 29.4% among pharmacists, while in the pandemic their number (20.6%) decreased approximately by 9%. As a result of the violence encountered at work, 43% of the pharmacists required psychological support. In the most frequent cases, pharmacists were assaulted by patients (82.4%), colleagues (5.9%), managers and drug users (2.9%). Most aggression events – 91.2% occurred during days and only 8.2% during the night shift. According to the study, 52.9% of the participants considered that the pharmacies in which they work have a general policy for preventing violence, and 76.5% of them confirmed this. Conclusion. Verbal violence remains the most significant problem in the workplace among pharmacists in both periods of the study. Alarms, different security systems and safe exit remain the safest ways to prevent workplace violence.