How to Adequately Report Workplace Violence in Healthcare Setting: A Systematic Review With Hierarchical Cluster Analysis of Workplace Violence Reporting Forms.

introductionThis review aimed to identify existing workplace violence (WPV) reporting forms worldwide, examine their domains and determine the essential information required to develop a more comprehensive and effective WPV reporting form. MATERIALS AND

methodsA systematic search of PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar from 1990 to 2025 was conducted. Data extracted included study characteristics, populations, reporting form names, number of items and reporting approaches. Descriptive analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis were performed to determine the number of items and domains included in each WPV reporting form.

resultsA total of 22 WPV reporting forms were included. Across these forms, 148 reporting items were identified and grouped into 13 domains: sociodemographic data of the victim, job characteristics of the victim, characteristics of the notifier, characteristics of the incident, characteristics of the injury, measures taken during the violence, consequences of the violence, postviolence treatment, aftermath of the violence, reporting of the violence, perception of victim postviolence, characteristics of the assailant and characteristics of the witness. Hierarchical cluster analysis classified the 22 WPV reporting forms into three clusters based on comprehensiveness: rapid forms (three items), brief forms (mean 13.75 items) and detailed forms (mean 27.77 items).

conclusionsSubstantial variation exists in the content of WPV reporting forms. Future WPV reporting forms should, at minimum, include seven most commonly reported domains, particularly job characteristics of the victim, characteristics of the incident, characteristics of the injury, measures taken during the violence, characteristics of assailant, characteristics of the witness and reporting of the violence. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: The findings highlight substantial variability in the content, structure and domains of existing WPV reporting forms used in healthcare institutions, indicating the need for standardised, evidence-based reporting tools that capture essential information relevant to nursing practice. Standardisation would improve comparability of WPV data across institutions and countries, facilitating more accurate benchmarking and global surveillance, particularly as nurses constitute the largest proportion of frontline healthcare workers. Additionally, nursing leaders, hospital administrators and health authorities can utilise these findings to strengthen institutional WPV policies by implementing clear and accessible reporting procedures and integrating domains related to prevention programmes, incident management and postincident support to guide policy development, staff training and resource allocation.