The effect of occupational safety climate perception of personnel working in emergency health services on occupational anxiety

Purpose This study aimed to assess the impact of the perceived occupational safety climate on the occupational anxiety of emergency health services personnel. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive study was conducted among 353 emergency healthcare workers between April and May 2024. Data collection tools included the Introductory Information Form, Occupational Safety Climate Scale and Occupational Anxiety Scale for Emergency Health Workers. Multiple linear regression (stepwise method) was used to assess the impact of occupational characteristics on occupational anxiety and simple linear regression analyzed the effect of the safety climate on anxiety. Ethical approval was obtained. Findings The mean score for the Occupational Safety Climate Scale was 17.42 ± 3.56 and for the Occupational Anxiety Scale, 87.32 ± 12.96. Occupational characteristics explained 25.7% of the variance in anxiety, while the safety climate explained 4.2%. Factors such as the belief that one cannot continue in the profession long-term (ß = 0.209, p < 0.05), working in pre-hospital emergency services (ß = 0.154, p < 0.05), job-related stress (ß = 0.135, p < 0.05), dissatisfaction with the profession (ß = 0.122, p < 0.05), poor diet during work (ß = 0.115, p < 0.05), exposure to verbal violence (ß = 0.113, p < 0.05) and irregular sleep (ß = 0.108, p < 0.05) were positive predictors of occupational anxiety. Conversely, a high safety climate (ß = −0.205, p < 0.05) was a negative predictor of anxiety. Originality/value Emergency healthcare workers experience low occupational safety and high anxiety. Enhancing training and awareness activities is recommended to improve occupational safety and reduce anxiety levels in emergency healthcare workers.