Hospitals Observe National Day of Awareness To End Violence Against Healthcare Workers

This Friday, June 6, the Connecticut Hospital Association (CHA) will join hospitals across the state and nation in observing the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) ninth annual Hospitals Against Violence #HAVhope day.  Connecticut hospitals are united in efforts to raise awareness about the importance of building safe environments in healthcare settings for all workers and patients.

In 2023, there were 2,762 reported incidents in Connecticut of violence in hospitals.  Connecticut hospitals have implemented policies to combat workplace violence through multiple approaches.  As required by state law, all licensed healthcare facilities have established workplace safety committees with management and staff to conduct risk assessments, develop a plan, and meet regularly to implement and modify the plan as required.  Connecticut hospitals and health systems are identifying patients at risk for intentional harm to themselves or others and taking steps to mitigate this risk, and they are recognizing environmental safety risks for patients and staff and making changes to reduce the occurrence of incidents.  They are also providing ongoing education and training to staff and volunteers on crisis prevention and de-escalation techniques and approaches to ensuring personal safety.

Through CHA, Connecticut hospitals have adopted a Statewide Patient and Family Code of Conduct Policy, a set of principles that outlines expectations for visitors to behave respectfully and safely.

In 2022 alone, the U.S. saw more than 2.1 million nonfatal and almost 74,000 fatal violence-related injuries, according to a new report.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cites that healthcare and social assistance experienced the highest counts and annualized incidence rates for workplace violence of any private industry sector between 2021 and 2022.  Nationally, hospitals continue to advocate for federal protections from on-the-job assaults and intimidation through the Save Healthcare Workers Act.  The bipartisan bill would make it a federal crime to assault hospital workers, similar to current federal law protecting airline and airport workers.