In order to determine the extent to which nurses working in hospitals in the Toronto area experienced abuse, questionnaires were distributed to 2344 nurses working in either a large teaching hospital, a psychiatric hospital or a community hospital. Of the 603 nurses responding to the questionnaire, 199 (33%) had experienced abuse in their last five days at work. There were no statistical differences between the three hospitals in the incidence of abuse. The abuse was mainly verbal, from the patient and during the day shift. Although abuse occurred in all areas of the hospitals and was directed towards nurses with all levels of education, it was most frequently found in extended care and emergency areas and most often directed towards registered nursing assistants (RNAs). Administrators may be unaware of the high incidence of abuse since only 41% of the nurses reported the abuse to their immediate supervisors.