Perceptions of health care professionals on the safety and security at Odi District Hospital, Gauteng, South Africa

BACKGROUND For optimum delivery of service, an establishment needs to ensure a safe and secure environment. In 2011, the South African government promulgated the National Core Standards for Health Establishments for safety and security for all employees in all establishments. Little is known about whether these standards are being complied to.Aim and setting: To assess the perceptions of health care professionals (HCPs) on safety and security at Odi District Hospital. METHODOLOGY A sample of 181 out of a total of 341 HCPs was drawn through a systematic sampling method from each HCP category. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. The SPSS® statistical software version 22 was used for data analysis. The level of statistical significance was set at < 0.05. RESULTS There were more female respondents than male respondents (136; 75.10%). The dominant age group was 28-47 years (114; 57.46%). Perceptions on security personnel, their efficiency and the security system were significantly affirmed (p = 0.0001). The hospital infrastructure, surroundings and plan in emergencies were perceived to be safe (p < 0.0001). The hospital lighting system was perceived as inadequate (p = 0.0041). Only 36 (20.2%) HCPs perceived that hospital authorities were concerned about employees' safety (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION HCPs had positive perceptions regarding the hospital's security system. Except for the negative perceptions of the lighting system and the perceived lack of hospital authorities' concern for staff safety, perceptions of the HCPs on the hospital working environment were positive. The hospital authorities need to establish the basis of negative perceptions and enforce remedial measures to redress them.