Overview:
The healthcare environment creates a major challenge in the prevention and intervention of violence. The rate of injuries and illness from violence in the healthcare industry is more than three times greater than violence in all private industry.
The COVID pandemic has caused an increase in violence to nurses and
physicians. Healthcare organizations include hospitals, outpatient
clinics, medical office clinics, home health care, home-based hospice,
long term care/memory care, paramedic and emergency medical services,
mobile clinics, drug treatment programs and ancillary healthcare
organizations. What makes violence in healthcare unique is that it
carries negative ramifications for quality patient care.
In the U.S. some states, such as California, have passed legislation
specifically addressing violence in healthcare. There are other federal
and state laws that require the employer to address the hazards of
workplace violence, and laws that protect the victims of workplace
violence.
OSHA identifies healthcare as one of three “high risk” industries for
violence and has written a Guidance document specifically outlining
steps healthcare should take to combat the risk.
Violence in healthcare is perpetrated not only by patients, their
families, and visitors, but as well among the health professionals
themselves. It may include a patient admitted to the ER high on drugs
and wielding a knife. Or, it may be an enraged physician in the
operating room flinging a scalpel at a nurse. And, the violence may be
one nurse bullying another nurse - depending how the word “violence” is
actually defined.
Why you should Attend:
The Joint Commission has even taken a stand on dealing with unsafe
patient care due to abusive (which may constitute violence) behavior by
health professionals. Your role as leaders in your healthcare
organization equates to a responsibility to create and sustain a safe
working environment for your employees AND a safe and healing
environment for your patients. This webinar will review the critical
elements required to plan, design, develop, implement, and evaluate your
healthcare organization’s violence prevention plan. Are you prepared to
deal with an active shooter on one of your patient floors-which
happened in a hospital in Minnesota? As we hear more and more about mass
shootings, it causes us to pause and wonder if it could really happen
in a hospital, clinic, or when visiting a patient’s home. Fortunately,
most violence does not rise to that level, but nonetheless, the violence
that commonly occurs in healthcare has profound consequences for all
involved. It is essential you prepare to prevent and react to minimize
violence that occurs.
Areas Covered in the Session:
- To define workplace violence
- To provide examples of workplace violence in healthcare
- To discuss the relevant laws that address workplace violence
- To state the impact and consequences of violence to the healthcare victims, the organization and patient care
- To examine the causes of healthcare violence
- To discuss a violence prevention program to ensure patients, families, visitors, and staff are safe
- To outline the roles and responsibilities of the organization’s stakeholders
- To explain how to help the workplace and workers recover following a violent episode
Who Will Benefit:
- Director of Risk Management
- Director of Safety
- Director of Quality Improvement
- Occupational Health Nurse
- VP of Nursing/Chief Nursing Officer
- Legal counsel
- Chief Medical Officer
- Chief Operations Officer