The frequency and types of violence experienced by Australian sonographers from patients and visitors: A pilot study

Introduction: There is paucity of literature examining violence against sonographers. The aim of this research was to provide insight into the frequency and types of violence from patients and visitors against sonographers in Australia. Methods: Australian Accredited Sonographers who had worked clinically in the past 12 months were invited to participate in a cross-sectional survey. Responses from the closed and open-ended questions are reported as number (percentage) or grouped into categories based on similarity for analysis. Results: There were 33 participants in this study, of which 19/33 (57.6%) had experienced at least one form of violence (physical, verbal or threatening behaviour) in the previous 12 months. Verbal abuse was the most frequent form of violence experienced by sonographers 19/33 (57.6%), followed by threatening behaviour 7/33 (21.2%) and physical violence 1/33 (3%). Sonographers attributed the violence to long waiting times, patient stress and anxiety, communication issues and patient mental illness. Conclusion: Violence is a concern for sonographers. Awareness of violence against sonographers may provide a safer working environment for sonographers and patients. Further research with larger numbers is required to validate the results of this study.