98% of Texas hospitals recently reported that workplace violence has increased or stayed constant in the last three years. Texas lawmakers have responded to the rise in violence against healthcare professionals by passing Senate Bill 240.
SB 240 is the result of a dedicated campaign by Texas healthcare leaders to secure a legislative response to violence in healthcare. SB 240 requires healthcare facilities to implement a workplace violence committee and workplace violence prevention plans by September 1, 2024.
SB 240 Requires Workplace Violence Safety Plans
The Texas Senate passed SB 240 in May 2023. The bill requires healthcare facilities to adopt, implement, and enforce a written workplace violence prevention plan to “protect healthcare providers and employees from violent behavior and threats of violent behavior” at these facilities. The bill aims to mitigate violence in healthcare by requiring “healthcare providers and employees to report incidents of workplace violence” at their facility.
The Texas Nurses Association and Texas Hospital Association have been pursuing a bill to prevent workplace violence in healthcare over recent years. The TNA points to “an alarming increase in incidents of workplace violence against nurses and other healthcare workers over recent years.” In response, TNA designated SB 240 as one of its top priorities, and, recognizing the severity of the problem, so did Texas legislators. As a result of this bill, nurses and other healthcare professionals are empowered to speak out against violence in their institutions and to inform institutional workplace violence safety plans.
The facilities specified in SB 240 include:
- licensed hospitals
- hospitals operated by Texas state agencies that are exempt from licensing
- licensed nursing facilities that employ at least two registered nurses
- home and community support services agencies that employ at least two registered nurses and are licensed or licensed and certified
- licensed ambulatory surgical centers
- freestanding emergency medical care facilities
- licensed psychiatric hospitals
SB 240 Requires Workplace Violence Prevention Committees
Under SB 240, healthcare organizations must establish or authorize an existing workplace violence prevention committee to develop, review, and evaluate all workplace violence prevention plans. These committees must include, at a minimum:
- One registered nurse who provides direct patient care at the facility being discussed
- One physician, if on staff*
- One security services facility employee, if on staff*
The guidance also encourages the sharing of workplace violence information with the committee and soliciting information from employees while developing and implementing protection plans.
National Implications of SB 240
Though SB 240 is specific to Texas, national organizations have also created policies to prevent workplace violence in healthcare. In early 2023, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) convened a panel of small businesses to offer input on a prospective rule, thus jumpstarting the process of developing new federal regulations. The panel’s small entity representatives (SERs) included hospitals, emergency rooms, psychiatric hospitals, home healthcare agencies, emergency medical services, and social assistance providers.
OSHA stated that any forthcoming rule would establish the following:
- a programmatic approach to workplace violence prevention
- workplace violence hazard assessments
- workplace violence control measures
- preventive training
- violent incident investigations and record-keeping
- anti-retaliatory provisions
- strategies that avoid stigmatization of healthcare patients and social assistance clients
By creating this rule, OSHA is responding to the reality that “nonfatal workplace violence is more widespread in the healthcare and social assistance sectors than in any other industry.” In 2019, the rate of nonfatal workplace violence incidents requiring the worker to take time off was nearly five times greater in privately operated healthcare and social assistance establishments than in private industry. These statistics will continue to prompt a federal response, so healthcare facilities nationwide are well advised to preemptively consider solutions to prevent workplace violence in healthcare that conform to developing OSHA standards.
Facilities Achieve Compliance with CENTEGIX CrisisAlert
SB 240 requires facilities to address their employees’ physical safety and security, and allow staff to report incidents of workplace violence without retaliation. CENTEGIX CrisisAlert empowers healthcare workers by providing a way to signal for help when needed. Alerts are automatically recorded in a database that prompts information collection needed to monitor trends and usage.
The CENTEGIX CrisisAlert duress badge is a discreet and wearable device that helps mitigate workplace violence in healthcare. CrisisAlert provides complete coverage for healthcare staff throughout a facility’s campus, including outdoors, thus ensuring that they have access to assistance at all times anywhere on campus.
The CENTEGIX CrisisAlert solution enables facilities to comply with the new Texas SB 240 Law, as well as the Joint Commission standards and current OSHA and accreditation guidelines. By helping facilities comply with existing and developing workplace violence safety plan requirements, CrisisAlert helps protect healthcare providers and nurtures a culture of safety. Within this environment, healthcare professionals can better provide high-quality patient care.
CrisisAlert performs the following integral functions in facilities’ workplace violence safety plans:
- Automated data collection: CrisisAlert records incidents of workplace violence, the total number of alerts, and training efforts.
- Total facility coverage: including emergency rooms, parking lots, and multiple floors.
- Innovative technology: a self-contained, self-healing Bluetooth network secures every square foot of facility property.
- One-button activation: employees can rapidly and discreetly request help with their wearable badges, allowing them to easily execute de-escalation training during a crisis.
- Precise location accuracy: the CrisisAlert platform delivers accurate location information, ensuring first responders know exactly where to go.
- Robust dashboard reporting: the CrisisAlert Dashboard equips leaders with actionable data to best understand how to support their teams and facilities.
CrisisAlert Mitigates Workplace Violence in Healthcare
CENTEGIX CrisisAlert technology can help keep your workforce safe and help you:
- Comply with Texas’ Senate Bill No. 240 by implementing the CrisisAlert incident response system.
- Fulfill Workplace Violence Prevention Standards. Meet current OSHA and Joint Commission accreditation guidelines for workplace violence prevention; CrisisAlert automates data collection of incidents of workplace violence, total number of alerts, and training.
- Avoid privacy concerns and staff adoption issues. Our CrisisAlert solution doesn’t require staff to download an app or use their personal device to send an alert.
CrisisAlert can help leaders ensure that healthcare staff receive the support they deserve during a crisis and that facilities’ workplace violence safety plans can be executed effectively.
Emergencies can occur at any moment in all types of healthcare facilities, including hospitals, surgery centers, clinics, or long-term care facilities. In many of these environments, changes to infrastructure aren’t feasible or affordable. These changes can also take months to complete. CENTEGIX CrisisAlert can be installed with no alterations to the physical structure or electrical wiring, and installation can be completed with minimal disruption to patient care. CrisisAlert not only helps mitigate workplace violence in healthcare but seeks to assist healthcare providers in continuing their important roles uninterrupted.
CENTEGIX CrisisAlert reduces workplace violence in healthcare. Learn more about how your facility can achieve compliance and create a culture of safety with CrisisAlert technology.