The relationship between staff sickness levels and client assault levels in a health service unit for people with an intellectual disability and severely challenging behaviour

The present study examined relationships between assault levels and sickness levels in staff working in a specialist challenging behaviour unit. The staff group experienced an average of 279.7 total assaults and an average of 422.5 hours sickness occurred each month. No significant relationships were found between total assaults and sickness levels, short- or long-term. Implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the available literature. Methodological difficulties are also discussed.