“Working in the emergency department is not a job; it's like a war” A narrative inquiry and interpretive phenomenology of the violence experienced by emergency nurses in Turkey

Aims: This study aims to reveal the violent experiences of nurses working in the emergency department and the meanings they attribute to them. Methods: This research was conducted as narrative inquiry and interpretive phenomenology and recruited 15 nurses. Interviews with nurses actively working in the emergency department and who had been exposed to violence by patients or their relatives were conducted with a semi-structured interview form. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist was used. Results: In the study, three themes were determined (1) Unpredictable event, (2) Interminable effects of violence, and (3) Like a bottomless pit. With seven sub-themes. Conclusions: This study underlined that violence applied to nurses by patients or relatives of patients in the emergency department is an unexpected situation that causes negative emotions. Violence affects all aspects of life and limits communication with the patient. Coping with a violent situation is challenging for nurses, and they demand support from the management.