Workplace bullying and patient safety

The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges in the UK has released a report which looks at what is being done to address bullying and undermining in the medical workforce. Creating supportive environments: tackling behavious that undermine a culture of safety emphasises that this workplace culture not only damages the wellbeing of those involved, but that it directly impacts on patient safety.

A recent article in Journal of Nursing Care Quality looks at this correlation from the nursing point of view.  Patient Safety and Workplace Bullying: An Integrative Review examines the literature and finds that workplace bullying is associated with negative nursing outcomes, but that there are very few studies examining how this affects patient safety. The authors urge for more research on this association so that policies can be developed to support a more respectful culture. "Bullying may well be so ingrained int he culture of nursing that it undermines credibility, professional values, and nursing's self-identity".

Houck, N. M., & Colbert, A. M. (2016). Patient safety and workplace bullying: An integrative review. Journal of Nursing Care Quality. doi:10.1097/NCQ.0000000000000209. NSW Health staff can obtain a copy of this article via CIAP.