Workplace Bullying in Emergency Nursing: Development of a Grounded Theory Using Situational Analysis

Background: The Institute of Medicine recognizes that the workplace environment is a crucial factor in the ability of nurses to provide safe and effective care, and thus interactions that affect the quality and safety of the work environment require exploration.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to use situational analysis to develop a grounded theory of workplace bullying as it manifests specifically in the emergency care setting.

Methods: This study used a grounded theory methodology called situational analysis. 44 emergency RNs were recruited to participate in one of 4 focus group sessions, which were transcribed in their entirety, and, along with field notes, served as the dataset.

Results: This grounded theory describes the characteristics of human actors and their reactions to conditions in the practice environment that lead to greater or lesser levels of bullying, and the responses to bullying as it occurs in U.S. emergency departments.

Discussion: Workplace bullying is a significant factor in the dynamics of patient care, nursing work culture, and nursing retention. The impact on patient care cannot be overestimated, both in terms of errors, substandard care, and the negative effects of high turnover of experienced RNs who leave, compounded by the inexperience of newly hired RNs. An assessment of hospital work environments should include nurse perceptions of workplace bullying, and interventions should focus on effective managerial processes for handling workplace bullying. Future research should include testing of the theoretical coherence of the model, and the testing of bullying interventions to determine the effect on workplace environment, nursing intent to leave/retention, and patient outcomes.