The Impact of the Pre-gradual Course on Professional Communication, Prevention of Violence and Self-Protection on Early Paramedics Practice: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Abstract Background Violence against paramedics has been described as a serious public health problem with the potential for significant physical and psychological harm. Education and training have been identified as key elements of any workplace violence prevention program. To compare the influence of the pregraduate course on 'Professional Communication and Prevention of Violence' and 'Self-Protection' on factors that impacted prevention, communication and understanding of violent patients among paramedics in their early practice. Method This qualitative study was a form of thematic analysis and adopted an inductive, ‘bottom-up’ approach, in which coded categories were derived from rich, descriptive data. Twenty semistructured in-depth interviews were carried out with paramedics two years after their graduation. The outcomes from the intervention group (course graduates, n = 10) were compared with a control group (did not attend the course, n = 10) matched for gender, age, specialisation, level of education, and practice experience. Results The course graduates were more likely to consider the causes and reasons leading to patients’ violence than the control group. Moreover, course graduates tried to prevent conflict more often and demonstrated greater respect for, compassion for and understanding violent patients. Conclusion This study demonstrates that thorough, deep and focused pre-graduate education focused on communication is more likely to lead to consideration of the causes and reasons leading to patients’ violence in early paramedic practice.