Mitigating Workplace Violence
Good morning!
I wanted to bring you an update on our efforts to ensure the Medical Center is a safe environment for all employees and learners. We know that COVID-19 has taken a toll, not just on patients, but on caregivers as well.
The stress of the last two years has placed an inordinate amount of pressure on caregivers across the country, including right here at UMMC. Staff shortages, seriously ill patients and long hours have all contributed to the burden. Adding to those issues is a disturbing increase in workplace violence.
As mentioned in the March 26, 2021 VC Notes, we have a zero-tolerance workplace violence policy (called the Disruptive Behavior Policy, which is available online) that covers threatening actions and words.
Workplace violence, whether physical, verbal, nonverbal or emotional, is a topic of great concern in health care. Hospitals and health systems across the country are asking patients and their loved ones to demonstrate patience, understanding and kindness in response to rising reports of violence and threats against care providers and support staff.
In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in 2020 that the health care and social service industries experience the highest rates of injuries caused by workplace violence and are 5 times as likely to suffer a workplace violence injury than workers overall. Health care workers accounted for 73 percent of all nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses due to violence in 2018, the most recent year for available data.
We are all dealing with stress and frustration because of the pandemic, but when that pressure spills into our hospitals and clinics - spaces designed for care and healing - we must address it.
Prior to the start of the pandemic, I wrote in a November 8, 2019 VC Notes about a comprehensive plan to prevent workplace violence. At that time, a study group worked to establish a framework for reporting incidents, a classification system for concerning behavior and measures staff can take in response.
While initial efforts included all three parts of our mission (education, research and health care), anecdotal reports of increasing workplace violence incidents caused us to take a closer look at the clinical setting, where most cases occur.
From the first phase of this plan, we have data; and in 2021, we get a clear picture of what’s happening:
- A total of 770 cases of workplace violence occurred last year. Of the total, 700 involved acts affecting employees that are perpetrated by patients or visitors. Most incidents (73%) were patient-on-employee violence followed by visitor-on-employee cases (19%).
- We had 70 cases of employee-initiated workplace violence, including against other employees.
- We saw a gradual increase of incidents beginning in August (coincidentally the same time the Delta variant surged), with a sizable jump in December. These events have become increasingly physical.
- A monthly high of 104 events happened in December, the largest number since data capture began in 2018.
UMMC Police assisted in 71 cases that were reported through risk management, and I want to take a moment to thank Chief Mary Eileen Paradis, Deputy Chief Joshua Bromen and their entire department for their proactive support and service in helping to keep our UMMC community safe.
We have more work to do to ensure the safety of our employees considering this rise in incidents. At the time, the work group’s next steps were to develop and roll out staff training in reporting workplace violence events, and in managing/de-escalating aggressive behaviors. But, soon after that 2019 column, COVID-19 struck. Our focus diverted to treating patients and managing resources to get through the crisis.
However, even as we navigate the challenges we’ve encountered since 2020, we remain committed to keeping everyone in a UMMC facility safe. That’s why I commissioned the creation of the Institutional Workplace Violence Committee in 2021. The purpose of this committee is to provide strategic direction, policy development and analysis, and coordination of workplace violence prevention, response, workforce training, and reporting activities across all mission areas and populations of the Medical Center. The committee makes recommendations to the UMMC Executive Cabinet.
The Institutional Workplace Violence Committee, the subcommittees and others are highly engaged in multiple efforts to stem the tide of these events and to support employees when events occur.
- The subcommittees include education and training, data capture and reporting, clinical and policy. These committed Medical Center employees are working to develop institution-wide training, policy, comprehensive data capture and reporting, and a strategy that meets the standards of The Joint Commission related to workplace violence, including a workplace violence-prevention policy.
- Plans are in place for piloting a behavioral response and proactive de-escalation program on select floors of the adult and children’s hospitals in partnership with UMMC Police. As we move forward with these plans, you will see additional information in the coming weeks.
The committee’s work will complement the existing resources we have available to the UMMC community.
I want to thank the members of the committee, led by Dr. Mann, and the subcommittees for the time and deliberate process used to develop the approach to protecting all employees.
Violence in any form must never be tolerated. The safety of our employees, faculty, students and visitors is an invaluable part of A Healthier Mississippi.
