Burnout and fear of contagion as factors in aggressive tendency of health-care workers treating people with AIDS

We investigated the roles of burnout and perceived fear of contagion with AIDS among 130 medical practitioners and 112 nurses (N = 242) working in AIDS care in Nigeria, in relation to the level of their aggressive tendency toward people living with AIDS (PLWAs). Participants completed scales concerning perceived AIDS anxiety, burnout, and aggressive tendency. Results showed that perceived fear of AIDS, burnout, and category of staff (medical practitioner or nurse), respectively, were associated with the tendency to perpetrate aggression against PLWAs. The implication of these findings is that stakeholders in the health-care system in Nigeria and elsewhere should address any aggressive tendency of health workers in public-health settings in order to prevent the occurrence of actual physical aggression against clients. We recommend that consideration should be given to the factors implicated in this study when intervention strategies are being developed.