Disruptive behavior by health care workers mainly arises from disputes between workers and many times compromises patient care, according to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority (PSA).
The PSA recommends that health care facilities establish policies that address disruptive behavior so that patient safety is not compromised. The Pennsylvania Medical Society supports such policies as long as physicians have input in their development.
Of 177 disruptive behavior events reported to the PSA between May 2007 and October 2009, about 40 percent were due to conflicts between clinicians. About 20 percent were due to procedures not being followed, while 10 percent resulted from no response or delayed response.
Disruptive behavior occurred nearly half the time in operating rooms and medical/surgical units. Sixteen percent happened in intensive care units, 8 percent in emergency departments, and 7 percent in outpatient departments.
Examples include a surgeon who left the operating room after a dispute and a physician who refused to wait for local anesthetic to take effect before a circumcision.
Better communication, coordination, and teamwork can help reduce the incidence of disruptive behavior and improve patient care, the PSA said.