Journal of Nursing, Social Studies, Public Health and Rehabilitation X:X | DOI: 10.32725/jnss.2026.006

Management of nursing care for aggressive patients in intensive care

Barbora Tylichová ORCID...1, 2, *, Hana Hajduchová ORCID...1
1 University of South Bohemia in Èeské Budìjovice, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, Èeské Budìjovice, Czech Republic
2 Liberec Regional Hospital, a.s., Department of Emergency Medicine, Liberec, Czech Republic

Introduction: Aggressive behaviour in intensive and acute care threatens healthcare professionals' safety, well-being, and quality of care.

Aim: The primary aim of this study was to explore healthcare professionals' preparedness to manage aggressive behaviour in intensive and acute care settings. Secondary aims included examining the reported use of preventive measures, such as the Brøset Violence Checklist (BVC), training in aggression management, de-escalation techniques, and protective equipment.

Methods: A convergent mixed-methods observational study was conducted in 2024-2025. The quantitative component consisted of a non-standardised questionnaire completed by 118 respondents. The qualitative component comprised an exploratory series of semi-structured interviews with five informants.

Results: No significant quantitative associations were found between BVC use, training, protective equipment, or de-escalation, and lower aggression incidence. Qualitative findings indicated context-dependent effectiveness influenced by experience, training relevance, organisational factors, and institutional support; de-escalation was preferred but situation-dependent.

Conclusion: Aggression management in intensive and acute care cannot rely on isolated tools; effective prevention requires a system-level approach combining context-sensitive training, appropriate predictive tool use, organisational support, and structured post-incident debriefing.

Keywords: Aggression; Aggressive behaviour; De-escalation; Healthcare professionals; Management; Patient
Conflicts of interest:

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Received: December 3, 2025; Revised: March 26, 2026; Accepted: April 13, 2026; Prepublished online: April 13, 2026 

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