Conducting research in rural locations requires considerable travel for the research team members. On the highway grain elevators such as these are a reminder of Saskatchewan's rich agricultural history which has shaped the distribution of the rural population.
Physical Assault of Staff in Long Term Care
Research by members of the Rural Dementia Care team in rural long term care facilities identified a high rate of physical assault for Special Care Aides (SCAs) [now referred to as Continuing Care Assistants (CCAs) in Saskatchewan] compared to other caregivers. CCAs provide the majority of hands-on care in nursing homes and are sometime referred to as Nursing Aides or Personal Support Workers. The research also identified an association between more frequent assault and higher job stress.
In 2007 a research team further investigated Continuing Care Assistants' experiences of physically aggressive behaviour, and their perceptions of the causes of the behaviour. This study yielded some Key Messages (summarized):
- CCAs are discouraged and frustrated that physical assault has received so little attention and concern.
- CCAs' interactions with residents are determined by multiple interacting factors that are outside of their control yet have a profound influence on CCAs' ability to use their knowledge and skills to provide appropriate resident-centred care, and to avoid assault.
- Many CCAs have given up reporting all but the most severe physical aggression incidents because the most common response to reports of aggression is to question the caregiver about their approach.
- Reducing CCAs' exposure to physical assault will require a multi-faceted approach that includes CCAs as part of the problem-solving process, and an examination of organizational factors that produce the conditions for CCA assault.
This research was published in the journal Qualitative Health Research, titled: Taking the Hit: Focussing on caregiver “error” masks organizational-level risk factors for nursing aide assault. You can download a pdf author's final copy of this paper as submitted to the journal. The final, definitive version is available at http://online.sagepub.com.
The research team also created a Study Report to share study finding with the participating CCAs and long term care facilities. The team felt that a direct, clear, report format would be the best way to ensure that CCAs had access to the study findings. The research team also met with CCAs in each of the 11 participating facilities to review the report. You may download a pdf version of this document titled: Physical Assault of Special Care Aides: Let's Take a Look - A Study Report.
The issue of physical aggression experienced by CCAs in long term care is of particular interest to the study authors, and the Rural Dementia Care team. Further research activities are continuing to build upon the work to date, and are also being conducted in a way to maximize the potential for knowledge exchange between the researchers and the participants.