Positive work environments of early-career registered nurses and the correlation with physician verbal abuse

BackgroundVerbal abuse in the workplace is experienced by registered nurses (RNs) worldwide; physicians are one of the main sources of verbal abuse.PurposeTo examine the relationship between levels of physician verbal abuse of early-career RNs and demographics, work attributes, and perceived work environment.MethodFourth wave of a mailed national panel survey of early career RNs begun in 2006.DiscussionRNs’ perception of verbal abuse by physicians was significantly associated with poor workgroup cohesion, lower supervisory and mentor support, greater quantitative workload, organizational constraints, and nurse–colleague verbal abuse, as well as RNs’ lower job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and intent to stay.ConclusionRNs working in unfavorable work environments experience more physician abuse and have less favorable work attitudes. Causality is unclear: do poor working conditions create an environment in which physicians are more likely to be abusive, or does verbal abuse by physicians create an unfavorable work environment?