If you are responsible for security at your hospital, you know that you face the same challenges as other organizations plus a lot more. Statistics show that healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience workplace violence than workers in other industries—and that makes your job so much more important.

Workplace violence (WPV) affects every organization, and its costs can be devastating—from property theft and damage and productivity losses to psychological damage to employees from a traumatizing event and, in some instances, the tragic loss of life. Every year, approximately two million people throughout the country are victims of non-fatal violence at the workplace. The Department of Justice has found violence to be a leading cause of fatal injuries at work with about 1,000 workplace homicides each year.

Healthcare workers face significant risks of job-related violence. OSHA’s Guidelines for Preventing Workplace Violence for Healthcare and Social Service Workers cites a Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report that while less than 20% of workplace injuries happen to healthcare workers, they suffer 50% of all assaults. These statistics tell the same stories your employees do and reinforce the need for a workplace violence prevention program to protect them from the violence they could face by simply doing their jobs.

The Joint Commission emphasized the importance of workplace violence prevention when it revised its standards in 2022 for accredited hospitals and critical access hospitals. In order to renew its accreditation, hospitals must prioritize workplace violence prevention in a formal, centralized program.

We can help you develop that program which can include an assessment of the worksite, an investigation of the hospital’s workplace violence incidents, an analysis of security, safety, and emergency related policies and procedures, and training, education, and environmental design that reflect best practices and conform to applicable laws and regulations, among other best practice based components.

And as you prioritize safety and security for patients, visitors, and employees, your WPV prevention program will evolve.

Your employees have different roles and are responsible for different areas at work, but a safe workplace is everyone’s responsibility. You all have to be committed to working together to identify, report, monitor, and prevent workplace violence.

In our post-pandemic world, we also recognize that the workplace can be defined as any company related location—including the hospital itself, off-site work functions, and any place where employees are acting as representatives of your hospital, such as patients’ homes, and employees’ homes as some employees continue to work from home. As a serious workplace issue, workplace violence can occur at any time, to anyone, in many ways. Your employees could experience many acts of violence including verbal threats, intimidation, beating, kicking, biting, stalking, bullying, aggravated assault, battery, sexual assault, shooting, stabbing, and harassment from patients, co-workers, or friends or family members of patients.

Not only will we help you enhance your workplace violence prevention strategy and program, but we’ll also conduct assessments, develop your emergency management plan, train your employees, and partner with you to solve whatever challenge you are currently facing. Contact us today to discuss how to protect your people.