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Workplace Violence

UMMC’s Commitment

UMMC is committed to creating an environment of zero harm.
Each episode of violence or credible threat to our workforce warrants notification to leadership, law enforcement, and the creation of an I-CARE report to analyze what happened and to identify actions to mitigate risk in the future.

Workplace Violence Defined

Any assault, stalking harassment, vandalism, intimidating communication (electronic or verbal) or behavior, or threat occurring in the workplace.
Workplace violence includes behaviors and conduct that create anxiety, fear, or distrust in the workplace and is inclusive of, but not limited to: Assault, Harassment, Stalking, Threats, Intimidating communication/behavior, Vandalism, Verbal Abuse, and Brandishing/using any weapon.

Workplace Violence in Health Care

Health care workers are four times more likely to have work-related injuries from workplace violence than all other private industries.
In an academic medical center, employees, students, contractors, volunteers and/or vendors, may experience or be exposed to violence from several sources. These include, but are not limited to: Employee to employee, Patient to employee, Employee to patient, Patient to patient, Visitor to employee, Visitor to patient, Student to student, & Student to employee.
It is important to report ANY event that involves patients, employees (including physicians), students, visitors, contractors, volunteers, and/or vendors.
According to Mississippi Code Annotated, Chapter 3, Crimes Against the Person (97-3-7), assault on employees of a health care provider or health care facility “is an aggravating circumstance for charging” under subsections (1)(b) and (2)(b).

De-Escalation Intervention Strategies

Health care environments can be stressful and confusing.
A person’s anxiety is sometimes manifested as agitation with a notable change in behavior and/or an involuntary reaction or response triggered by a specific occurrence.
When agitation is noted, you have a responsibility to use de-escalation methods.
Early intervention is key, however, unnecessary interventions can make the situation worse.
When approaching a de-escalation conversation, consider:
- Knowledge & understanding of the situation.
- Dangerousness of the behavior.
- Impact on others.
- Available resources.
Ensure safe conditions by:
- Consider moving to a quiet and/or safer location.

10 Tips for De-escalation:

1. Be Empathetic and Nonjudgmental

Keep in mind that whatever the person is going through may be the most important thing in their life at the moment.

2. Respect Personal Space

If you must enter someone’s personal space (like to provide care), explain your actions so the person feels less confused and frightened.

3. Use Nonthreatening Non-verbal Communication

Keeping your tone and body language neutral will go a long way toward defusing a situation.

4. Avoid Overreacting

Positive thoughts like “I can handle this” and “I know what to do” will help you maintain your own rationality and calm the person down.

5. Focus on Feelings

Watch and listen carefully for the person’s real message.

6. Ignore Challenging Questions

Ignore the challenge, but not the person. Bring their focus back to how you can work together to solve the problem.

7. Set Limits

A person who’s upset may not be able to focus on everything you say. Be clear, speak simply, and offer the positive choice first.

8. Choose Wisely What You Insist Upon

If you can offer a person options and flexibility, you may be able to avoid unnecessary altercations.

9. Allow Silence for Reflection

Silence can be a powerful communication tool.

10. Allow Time for Decisions

A person’s stress rises when they feel rushed. Allowing time can bring calm.

Communicate with HEART® - Evidenced Based Empathy Communication Training is Now Available!

How to sign-up for training:

Enroll in the class by searching the HealthStream catalogue for “Communicate with HEART.”
Ask your supervisor.

Code White (hospital setting only)

A Code White is a way for staff to obtain emergency assistance when a patient or visitor becomes potentially dangerous to self and/or others.
A Code White can be called by dialing 4-1111 from any UMMC phone and asking the operator to call a Code White.
UMMC Police will respond, and will manage the incident until the situation is deemed safe.
When a Code White is called in a clinical area, the Nurse Manager/ Administrative House Supervisor will respond and support the team.
The Charge Nurse, Nurse Manager, or AHS will organize the group and provide directions to intervene once UMMC Police have deemed the situation safe.

Behavioral Response in an Emergency

All emergency instances of Workplace Violence or a Potential Act of Workplace Violence risk should be reported immediately to UMMC Police by pressing a panic button, calling a "code white," and/or dialing 911 on a campus phone or (601) 815-7777 (for non-campus or cell phone).

After Hours Resources for Health Care Workers

Children’s AHS 601-720-2281
Adult AHS 601-540-7801
UMMC Police (Code White, panic button)

Office of Patient Experience

UMMC’s Office of Patient Experience (OPE) team supports front line caregivers by helping UMMC caregivers establish clear expectations with patients and their loved ones in an effort to better provide patient and family centered communication, care delivery, and process improvement.

OPE is a first line staff resource for assistance and facilitation and support in any uncomfortable situation involving patient and family communication.

If you or another care team member needs help with:

understanding your patient’s or their family’s needs or requests
a patient request for a copy of their patient rights, an advocate, or to make a formal report of their concerns
determining best steps to de-escalate patient or family agitation

Contact a team member in UMMC’s Office of Patient Experience.

Email: OPE@umc.edu
Phone: 601-815-4545
Or In Person: H132 Offices Next Door to Nursing Services in the Main Hospital

Patients and Families Also Have the Responsibility to Respect the Rights of Others

Signage posted around campus promotes a safe environment is throughout the UMMC campus
For more information about Patient Rights, visit the Patient Rights page: Patient Rights UMMC
For more information about Patient Responsibilities, visit the Patient Responsibilities page: Patient Responsibilities UMMC

UMMC Police and Public Safety Department

Mission Statement

In collaboration with our UMMC partners, the UMMC PD is committed to providing a safe environment for all students, staff, patients and visitors. We will be empathetic and always treat people with dignity and respect. We will keep our methods transparent and remain accountable to ourselves and our diverse community.

UMMC Police are trained to assist in the management of emergency situations including potential workplace violence.

For on campus emergencies, call 911 (from any campus phone) or (601) 815-7777 (if away from campus or on a cell phone).
Many units are equipped with panic buttons that send a silent emergency alert to UMMC Police. Know the location of your panic button!
Only push the button once! Pushing the panic button a second time will turn it off.
*Panic alarms are one way communication, if someone has the ability, it is critical someone calls UMMC PD Dispatch to give accurate and key information.

Managing Continued Escalation On Main Campus

If there is not yet concern about physical violence, a first step is to seek de-escalation assistance from the manager or a senior employee. If you need assistance with de-escalation the UMMC PD Behavioral Response Team (BRT) is available daily from 9:00 am – 9:00 pm. They can be requested via dispatch.
If efforts remain unsuccessful, or if there is concern that the situation may become physically violent, the UMMC Police Department are notified. Please provide dispatch with a description of the incident and an exact location.
Staff do NOT physically engage with a physically aggressive person.

Non-Emergent Behavioral Response

An act, or potential act, of Workplace Violence that is not an emergency and occurs in a health care setting, should be reported via ICARE or to UMMC Police by calling (601) 815-3072 or (601) 984-1360.
An act, or potential act, of Workplace Violence that is not an emergency and occurs outside of health care settings should be reported to UMMC Police by calling (601) 815-3072 or (601) 984-1360.

Off-Campus Violence

For off-campus violence that is emergent and currently in-progress, call 911.

For off-campus violence that is non-emergent and no longer in progress, please use the following numbers based on your location:

Grenada County Hospital

Grenada P.D.: 662-226-1211

Bay St. Louis Clinic

Bay St. Louis P.D: 228-467-9222

Acadian Clinic & Bridgewater Clinic

Gulfport P.D.: 228-868-5959

Cedar Lake Children’s Clinic

Biloxi P.D.: 228-392-0641

Holmes County Hospital

Jackson based UPD: 601-815-3072 or 601-984-1360

Non-Emergent Behavior Involving Coworkers

An employee or volunteer with non-emergency Workplace Violence concerns involving a supervisor or coworker report their concerns to Employee Relations by emailing hremployeerelations@umc.edu or calling (601) 984-1130.
Students with non-emergency Workplace Violence concerns report their concerns to Student Complaints, via the form available at www.umc.edu/student_complaints.

Reporting

Every incidence of workplace violence should be reported.
Depending on the specific situation, there are multiple ways to report workplace violence:

I-CARE Report (Required)
Employee Injury Report
Law Enforcement Report
Office of Patient Experience Report

I-CARE Report

An I-CARE report should ALWAYS be completed following an incidence of workplace violence in ALL clinical AND non-clinical settings.
This is required whether or not an injury occurs.
I-CARE reports are important for standardized documentation and improved reporting of events to continually assess measures related to workplace violence.

You should complete an I-CARE Report if you are a victim or witness to: Physical /sexual assault, Stalking, Manipulation, Threats, Harassment, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Prejudicial Comments, Verbal abuse, Emotional abuse, and/or Intimidation.

Examples of when to complete an I-CARE Report:

A patient, visitor, or another employee yelled or cursed at you.
A visitor entered the hospital unauthorized.
A visitor entered the hospital with a weapon.
A patient or visitor is partaking in illegal substances.
Another employee is stalking you.
A patient or visitor makes a threat, e,g,-"I'm going to come after you when I get out of here."
You witnessed an incident of concern between a patient and a visitor or two visitors.

How to complete an I-CARE Report:

Under the Clinical section on the intranet homepage, select “I CARE Report.”
When entering an I-CARE for a workplace violence event, you can select “Patient”, Visitor”, or “Unsafe conditions.”
Then select the “Event Type” as a “Behavioral Event.”

Employee Injury Report

If an employee is involved in an altercation that results in an injury, a separate employee injury report is completed ASAP, and for clinical areas, on the shift of the event.
Even if there are no detectable injuries, it is best to enter an injury report when physicality is involved in the event an injury develops over time.
The employee injured must complete the form, a supervisor cannot complete it for them.
This form is required for worker’s compensation.

How to complete an Employee Injury Report:

From the intranet homepage, select "A-Z Index."
Select “Employee Injury Report” from the alphabetized list.This should be listed under "E" in "Employee and Student Health."
The injured employee will then be prompted to log in. The report is linked to their user information.
From the next screen, click “Submit Employee Injury.”
The top of this page will have the employee’s personal information. Complete the questionnaire.
Your supervisor’s name and email automatically populates in the required field - ensure this information is correct. When the report is saved, the information is automatically sent to Employee Health, HR and your supervisor. You should receive an email about your claim within a few days.

Law Enforcement Report

An employee can choose to file a report with local law enforcement. UMMC Police will assist in this.

Employee Mental Health Assistance Following an Event

Resilience in Stressful Events (R.I.S.E.) Program is a FREE- Peer Support Program with the goal of providing healing through active listening.

RISE is available for employees 24 hours a day 7 days per week.
RISE calls are confidential.
RISE can be reached through:
- Contact U- under RISE.
- Calling: 5-RISE (601-815-7473) request a RISE team member.
- For more information, visit the RISE Intranet Page: RISE Intranet Page.

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through TELUS Health provides short term counseling (up to three FREE visits per year) and referrals for long term counseling. The goal of the EAP is to assist employees and students and their families in the management of everyday life issues.

EAP is available through a scheduled appointment.
EAP calls are confidential.
Employee Assistance Program (available for employees, students, and their families) can be reached through:
- Calling: 1-844-664-0379.
- Internet URL: one.telushealth.com (username: ummc & password: ummceap).

Policy on the Prevention and Management of Workplace Violence at UMMC

View the Workplace Violence Prevention Policy:

On the Intranet Homepage, click the "Document Ctr./Policy Tech" icon under Administration.
Click "Policy Tech" on the page that follows.
In the searchbar on the top left, type in "Workplace Violence Prevention" and the policy will appear in the search results.

UMMC is committed to creating an environment of zero harm in clinical, learning, and professional environments.