Unfortunately, violence against healthcare workers has been in the news once again, with a lethal hostage situation in the ICU at UPMC Memorial Hospital in York, Pa., and a brutal attempted murder of a nurse at HCA Florida Palms West Hospital in West Palm Beach, Fla.
While these are an extreme and headline-grabbing example, healthcare workers across the nation are facing the threat of physical assault and verbal abuse every day.
Some startling statistics:
- Healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience workplace violence than workers overall. Source: Workplace Violence in Healthcare, 2018: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Nearly half of all nurses report experiencing physical violence, and 68% report experiencing verbal abuse. Source: American Association of Occupational Health Nurses
- Healthcare workers who experience violence are more likely to feel anxious, depressed, and burned out compared with those who did not — 85% report anxiety, 60% report depression, and 81% report burnout. Source: CDC October 2023 Vital Signs
- Two out of three emergency department physicians reported being assaulted in 2022, and a quarter of them reported being assaulted multiple times a week. Source: American College of Emergency Physicians
An informal poll of nurses on the Guardian Nurses team revealed that more than 80% of them experienced workplace violence when they worked in hospital settings in the past. It is important to note that these nurses were asked in a supportive environment, and it is highly likely that this problem is underreported in clinical settings.
To explain why, here is a meme making the rounds on social platforms among nurses:
- Punch a postal worker, get arrested
- Punch a grocery store worker, get arrested
- Punch a flight attendant, get arrested
- Punch a nurse, management says, “What could you have done differently?”
To help combat the problem, Guardian Nurses’ Founder, President, and CEO, Betty Long, MHA, RN, is joining a national effort to pass the “Safety From Violence for Healthcare Employees Act” to make it a federal offense to assault, intimidate, or interfere with a healthcare worker performing their duties in the workplace. This bill, which is modeled after current protections for aircraft and airport workers like flight crews and attendants, would create legal penalties for individuals who knowingly and intentionally assault or intimidate hospital employees. It is sponsored by Congresswoman Madeleine Dean (D-Penn.-04).
In June, Long will spend a “day on the Hill” as part of a delegation sent by the American Organization for Nursing Leadership to gather support for this critical legislation protecting the dedicated professionals who give care and save lives.