Effectiveness of educational interventions for health care staff to prevent and manage aggressive behaviors in patients admitted to an acute hospital: a systematic review protocol.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this review is to determine the most effective strategies for educating health care staff to manage or prevent aggressive patient behaviors within an acute care setting.

INTRODUCTION

Health care workers in acute settings are frequently at risk of being injured by aggressive patients. Staff are often ill-prepared to de-escalate such behaviors and, therefore, are at greater exposure to verbal or physical injury. This protocol outlines methods for a systematic review on the effectiveness of educational strategies to manage and/or prevent aggressive patient behaviors in hospitals.

INCLUSION CRITERIA

Quantitative studies that report on programs used to educate or train hospital staff in managing or preventing an episode of aggressive behavior by an adult patient while in an acute health care facility will be included. Individual, program, and organizational outcomes, such as confidence, behavior, knowledge, or attitudes, as well as recorded rates of injury, sick leave, stress, anxiety, or detection/prevention of aggression before and/or after the intervention will be analyzed. Psychiatric patients or settings are excluded from this review.

METHODS

Two reviewers will independently select and appraise eligible studies and extract data following methods outlined by JBI for systematic reviews of effectiveness. Multiple databases will be searched for studies in English and Chinese from 2008 to the present. The JBI System for the Unified Management, Assessment and Review of Information (JBI SUMARI) will be used to manage studies and, where possible, meta-analysis will be undertaken. Results will be presented in a Summary of Findings following the GRADE approach.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION NUMBER

PROSPERO CRD42020190538.