Hello!
I'm so glad that you are checking out this blog. To help you get the most out of this site:

-If you are a health care provider who has been the victim of workplace violence at work, there is a page to "Tell Your Story". Please share your experience to help educate others on the dangers that we are frequently exposed to while caring for others and doing our jobs.

-If you would like to voice your support for this issue and learn how you can help, please click on the page "Get Involved." The Texas legislative session has started, and we have legislation on the table to fight for. Texas health care providers need YOUR help!

-If you would like more information on workplace violence, there is a page of "Workplace Violence Statistics" and "Other Links" to various government and professional organizations.

-If you are wondering why this issue is important, and why you personally should care, then you should read the page (and my personal favorite) "The Hospital is Not the Twilight Zone." This is my argument for why this issue matters and why felony legislation is needed now in Texas for assaulting a health care provider at work.

Nobody Deserves to be Abused at Work...It's NOT Part of the Job!

The Hospital is Not the 'Twilight Zone'

If I asked you to think about the most dangerous occupations, health care probably would not make your list. However, health care providers face staggeringly high rates of workplace assault and injury. Those providers at greatest risk are those that spend the most time with patients and the public providing care, such as nurses. While certain settings of practice are notorious for their high rates of workplace violence, all health care settings are potential breeding grounds assaults and abuse of health care providers.

You may be thinking to yourself-so what? OK, workplace violence is a problem in health care. There are lots of professions that deal with violence daily, such as police officers, EMS providers, first responders, security guards, government employees. That's right! All of those professions are exposed to high levels and risk of violence. HOWEVER, in the state of Texas they are afforded enhanced criminal protections for assaults with bodily injury and intent. That is exactly what Texas health care providers deserve and are asking for. We simply want the same level of legal protection given to other employment classes that have increased risk because of their job role. (see page "Bill Information" for more detail on the individual bills). We are not asking for "special protection," we are asking for the same protection that is in place for other trusted and respected employment classes at high risk for workplace assault. Several states have already passed similar legislation, and many more are in progress.

In many cases, including my own personal experience, workplace assaults in health care settings are not taken seriously by the criminal justice system. Health care providers are often told..."this happened while you were at work..." as an explanation of why an assailant is not arrested. If I were attacked at Wal-Mart, walking down the street, or working at a restaurant, I have no doubt that the assailant would be arrested. Why is this any different in health care settings?

When you cross the threshold into health care settings, you do not enter "the twilight zone." It is not another dimension of space and time in which the rules and laws of society become suspended. Since health care settings are not parallel universes, why is assaulting a health care provider not taken more seriously? We cannot create a realm of society where crimes can be committed and nothing happens. If that same perpetrator went into the parking lot and broke into a car, or attacked a visitor, or broke into your house, would you want them to go to jail? Absolutely! Criminal behavior should be addressed by criminal penalties. We cannot continue to give people a "free pass" to behave in any manner they choose to because they are angry, intoxicated, grieving, in pain, etc.

With the increasing need for Texas health care providers and the decreasing availability of health care services, it is imperative that Texas legislators make every effort to increase the criminal penalties for assaulting those that are working to help and serve the people of Texas. Hospitals and health care settings are supposed to be a safe haven for everyone where they may receive the best possible care in a protected environment.

Who is protecting the Texas health care providers?

Workplace Violence Statistics

  • Workplace violence is a common occurrence in health care settings
    • According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released in 2004, health care and social service workers accounted for nearly half, 48%, of all non-fatal injuries from assaults and violent acts committed among all professional groups (Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA], 2004).
    • OSHA (2004) also reported that injury rates clearly reflect that health care workers are at high risk of violent assault while on duty.
    • Health care is consistently ranked among the most dangerous occupations in regards to risk of workplace assault (Child & Mentes, 2010).
    • Research indicates that workplace violence in health care settings is increasing (Smyth, 2010).
  • All health care providers are at risk of workplace assault including nurses, doctors, health care aids, social workers, pharmacists, nurse practitioners and physician assistants. Those at greatest risk spend the most time directly with patients and their families (FBI, 2002).
    • Nurses face a higher rate of workplace assault that police officers or prison guards (International Council of Nurses, 2009).
    • In any given week, 8-13% of emergency department nurses are the victim of physical assault while at work (Emergency Nurses Association, 2010). 
  • The potential consequences of workplace violence are substantial.
    • Researchers have found in numerous studies that exposure to workplace violence leads to decreased job satisfaction which prompts many victims of violence to leave their job, or the health care profession all together (Estryn-Behar et al., 2008; Fernandes et al., 1999; Gerberich et al., 2004; Leblanc & Kelloway, 2002).
    • In addition to obvious physical injuries sustained, potential consequences may include depression, fear, anger, withdrawing from the work setting, burnout, post-traumatic stress disorder, difficulty sleeping, chronic pain, flashbacks, and problems with relationships outside of the work setting (American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 2008; Levin, Hewitt, and Misner, 1998). 
    • Additionally, the employer and patients may suffer as a result of increased absenteeism, emotional withdrawal from patients, reduced job productivity, and decreased job investment (Chapman, Perry, Styles, & Combs, 2009; Emmerick, Euwema, & Bakker (2007); Levin et al., 1998; Winstanley & Whittington, 2002).  

      References
      American Psychiatric Nurses Association. (2008). Workplace Violence: APNA Position Statement. Retrieved April 2, 2009, from http://www.apna.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3786 
      Chapman, R., Perry, L. Styles, I., & Combs, S. (2009). Consequences of workplace violence directed at nurses. British Journal of Nursing, 18(20), 1256-1261.
      Child, R. H., & Mentes, J. C. (2010). Violence against women: The phenomenon of workplace violence against nurses. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 31, 89-95.
      Emergency Nurses Association. (2010). Emergency Department Violence Surveillance Study. August 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2010, from http://www.ena.org/IENR/Documents/EVSSReportAugust2010.pdf  
      Emmerik, I. H., Euwema, M. C., & Bakker, A. B. (2007). Threats of workplace violence and the buffering effect of social support. Group and Organization Management, 32(2), 152-175.
      Estryn-Behar, M., van der Heijden, B., Camerino, D., Fry, C., Nezet, O., Conway, P. M., et al. (2008). Violence risks in nursing-results from the European NEXT study. Occupational Medicine, 58(2), 107-114.
      Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2002). Workplace Violence: Issues in Response. Retrieved April 2, 2009, from www.fbi.gov/publications/violence.pdf 
      Fernandes, C. M., Bouthillette, F., Raboud, J. M., Bullock, L., Moore, C. F., & Christenson, J. M. et al. (1999). Violence in the emergency department: A survey of healthcare workers. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 161 (10), 1245-1248.
      Gerberich, S. G., Church, T. R., McGovern, P. M., Hansen, H. E., Nachreiner, N. M., & Geisser, M. S., et al. (2004). An epidemiological study of the magnitude and consequences of work related violence: The Minnesota Nurses Study. Occupational Environmental Medicine, 61, 495-503.
      International Council of Nurses. (2009). Nursing Matters: Violence: A Worldwide Epidemic. Retrieved February 11, 2009, from http://www.icn.ch/matters_violence.htm 
      LeBlanc, M. M., & Kelloway, E. K. (2002). Predictors and outcomes of workplace violence and aggression. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(3), 444-453.
      Levin, P. F., Hewitt, B. J., & Misner, T. S. (1998). Insights of nurses about assault in hospital-based emergency departments. Image-the Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 30(3), 249-254.
      Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2004). Guidelines For Preventing Workplace Violence For Health Care and Social Service Workers. OSHA publication number OSHA 3148-01R. Retrieved May 6, 2009, from http://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3148.pdf 
      Smyth, J. C. (2010, August). Violent assaults on ER nurses rise as programs cut. Health Care on MSNBC.com. Retrieved October 6, 2010, from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38645144 
      Winstanley, S., & Whittington, R. (2002). Anxiety, burnout and coping styles in general hospital staff exposed to workplace aggression: A cyclical model of burnout and vulnerability to aggression. Work & Stress, 16(4), 302-315.


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