Safety measures used in after-hours house calls
Chris Onyebuchi Ifediora
Abstract
Background
Aggression against doctors involved in after-hours house calls (AHHC) is widely perceived to be high. It is, however, unclear how doctors who perform this service manage the risk of aggressive patients during home visits.
Aims
The aim of this paper is to explore if and how doctors manage the risk of violence against them during AHHC.
Methods
A survey was designed and administered to all 300 Australian-based doctors engaged in AHHC under the National Home Doctor Service (NHDS). The survey was conducted from September 2014 to November 2014.
Results
There were 172 responses (57.3 per cent). Only 43 per cent of respondents adopted personal protective measures. The remaining 57 per cent had none; of those 6 per cent had never considered protective measures, and 31.8 per cent were aware of the risk of violence, but were unsure of what to do. Measures adopted include the use of chaperones/security personnel (34.1 per cent), dependence on surgery policies (31.2 per cent), de-escalation techniques (15.2 per cent), panic buttons (7.2 per cent), personal alarms (6.1 per cent), and others (6.5 per cent). Females were more likely to adopt personal protective measures than males (OR 4.94; p
Full Text:
Aggression against doctors involved in after-hours house calls (AHHC) is widely perceived to be high. It is, however, unclear how doctors who perform this service manage the risk of aggressive patients during home visits.
Aims
The aim of this paper is to explore if and how doctors manage the risk of violence against them during AHHC.
Methods
A survey was designed and administered to all 300 Australian-based doctors engaged in AHHC under the National Home Doctor Service (NHDS). The survey was conducted from September 2014 to November 2014.
Results
There were 172 responses (57.3 per cent). Only 43 per cent of respondents adopted personal protective measures. The remaining 57 per cent had none; of those 6 per cent had never considered protective measures, and 31.8 per cent were aware of the risk of violence, but were unsure of what to do. Measures adopted include the use of chaperones/security personnel (34.1 per cent), dependence on surgery policies (31.2 per cent), de-escalation techniques (15.2 per cent), panic buttons (7.2 per cent), personal alarms (6.1 per cent), and others (6.5 per cent). Females were more likely to adopt personal protective measures than males (OR 4.94; p
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