April marks the start of Workplace Violence Prevention (WPV) Month. Around the country, safety discussions are taking a front seat in healthcare. For nurses, physicians, technicians, and other patient and family-facing roles, the increase in WPV is a daily threat.
In 2022, Press Ganey reported that, on average, more than two nurses are assaulted every hour¹ and the rate is only increasing. This is a significant factor in employee disengagement, staffing struggles, and declining retention rates. As human resource leaders typically handle investigations, prevention training, and recruitment, this pulls them to the center of the crisis.
Another industry thought leader—McKinsey and Company—predicted that the United States would see a shortfall of up to 450,000 RNs by 2025.² While WPV may not be the only reason for this decline, nurses are leaving the profession in droves and citing safety and burnout as paramount factors in their decision-making.³
“What nurses are telling us right now is they love their work, but they don’t like the environment, and what’s going on in the hospital environment right now,” Vicki Good, Chief Clinical Officer of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, told the Chief Healthcare Executive last month.
Human resource leaders in healthcare may not experience direct WPV day-to-day, but they play a pivotal role in prevention.
This blog will explore five ways HR leads can impact and improve workplace safety.
1. Risk Assessments
Identifying areas of opportunity (and success) is a key starting point for addressing workplace violence. It grants leaders visibility to potential risks and opens doors to understanding the unique challenges impacting their facility.
This is also a great way to leverage firsthand feedback from team members witnessing or experiencing WPV. These individuals often have insight into triggers and trends specific to your facility. If you’re early in your journey of addressing WPV, these activities can potentially be conducted without the need for widescale approvals or resources.
2. Training Programs
Regardless of which stage of WPV prevention you’re in, there are always benefits to training your staff. Workplace safety is a complex topic with deep roots that take time to explore. Practice and repetition can strengthen adoption and effectiveness. Facilitating sessions on warning sign recognition, de-escalation techniques, and appropriate response protocols can contribute to a successful WPV prevention plan.
A recent study published in the Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives (JCHIMP) shared, “Although many professional societies recommend de-escalation strategies as the first-line strategy, such training is not a part of the formal medical education curriculum for physicians or advanced practice providers. This may limit the hospitalist’s ability and confidence in the face of patient aggression.”
3. Employee Support
There’s no way around it: workplace violence significantly impacts the health and well-being of our healthcare workers. Staff experiencing WPV are more likely to suffer from mental health issues than those who don’t.⁴A recent study by the CDC found that 85% of healthcare workers who experience WPV report anxiety, 60% report depression, and 81% report burnout.⁴
Providing resources and support for employees affected by WPV can help you make strides in promoting staff safety and well-being. This can include a variety of services, such as counseling, trauma support, and proactive safety planning.
4. Comprehensive Safety Plans
After conducting a risk assessment, you may identify areas to enhance your safety plan. Lean into these opportunities to start building a culture of safety for your workforce. A multi-layered approach can help you maximize safety and your resources. By identifying your needs proactively and partnering with industry experts, you can lay the groundwork for a safer tomorrow. Here are some considerations:
- Establish a way for your staff to get support when faced with a situation that requires de-escalation or assistance. If a family member is losing their temper and starts threatening staff… If a nurse is being followed in the parking lot after their shift… empower them with a way to signal for help quickly and discreetly.
- Develop a proper response plan is developed. When an alert call for help comes in, who responds? Who can elevate a threat to a campus-wide lockdown? Answering these questions in advance will ensure everyone feels more prepared when an incident occurs.
- Vet high-risk areas where staff could be targeted, like stairwells and parking garages. Can a nurse still communicate their duress if they’re outside the building? Do they need access to cellular service or Wi-Fi? Your staff will thank you for protecting them when they need it most.
Collaborating with various stakeholders from your organization will help you pinpoint and plan for a successful approach.
5. Reporting and Data Analysis
A recent article published in the HIPAA Journal stated that “the scale of workplace violence in healthcare is unknown due to significant under-reporting.” Yet data shows that healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience violence than those outside of healthcare.³ If we ever intend to make a dent in WPV in healthcare, we must first reduce the barriers to reporting it.
Establish an easy way for your staff to report incidents of violence and then welcome the dialogue. A leadership team that stands united in this message is crucial to success. The days of healthcare workers tolerating WPV as “part of the job” are moving into the rearview mirror, and HR leaders around the country are deciding if they want to be part of the monumental change in the industry.
Accessible reporting mechanisms help you consistently collect, analyze, and adjust your safety plans. Data has power. By gaining visibility to the areas and characteristics tied to higher incident counts, you can step in front of the trends and take back control.
Developing comprehensive policies and procedures for preventing, reporting, and responding to incidents of WPV also ensures alignment with legal, OSHA, and joint commission requirements. As legislation gains momentum around the country, this will be increasingly important for HR leaders in healthcare organizations.
Healthcare facility leaders often feel that investing in a comprehensive safety plan is out of their budget. But by empowering your staff through proactive planning, training, and accessible technology, your path to safety could be closer than you think.
CENTEGIX is the leader in wearable safety technology, with over 600,000 CrisisAlert badges in use. Nationwide, over 11,500 locations trust our innovative safety solutions to empower and protect people.
See how we can make a difference in your facility.
¹ March 2023. 2023 NSI National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report. NSI Nursing Solutions, Inc. https://www.nsinursingsolutions.com/Documents/Library/NSI_National_Health_Care_Retention_Report.pdf
² Berlin, G., Lapointe, M., & Murphy, M. (2022, May 11). Assessing the lingering impact of COVID-19 on the nursing workforce. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved April 1, 2024, from https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/healthcare/our-insights/assessing-the-lingering-impact-of-covid-19-on-the-nursing-workforce
³ February 2024. HIGH AND RISING RATES OF WORKPLACE VIOLENCE AND EMPLOYER FAILURE TO IMPLEMENT EFFECTIVE PREVENTION STRATEGIES IS CONTRIBUTING TO THE STAFFING CRISIS. National Nurses United. https://www.nationalnursesunited.org/sites/default/files/nnu/documents/0224_Workplace_Violence_Report.pdf
⁴ CDC (2023, October 24). Health Workers Face a Mental Health Crisis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved March 13, 2024, from https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/health-worker-mental-health/index.html