It’s no secret that violence against healthcare workers has increased dramatically over the past decade. According to a recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, attacks against medical professionals grew by 63% from 2011 to 2018, with physicians often being the targets of violence. What’s more, the threat of violence can increase stress, cause disruptions and hinder the quality of care provided to our patients and communities.
The safety of all physicians, employees, patients and visitors at CHS-affiliated hospitals is crucially important. As part of ongoing efforts to ensure workplace safety, CHS has taken a number of steps to examine potential safety concerns and enhance security across the organization including the creation of a CHS leadership security task force. The task force meets regularly to review and discuss security concerns and reinforce best practices across our hospitals and other sites of care.
A new Security Risk Assessment Tool for Health System campuses and off-site locations has been implemented as well as updates to security policies, education materials, candidate requirements for Health System Security staff and signage prohibiting weapons in all buildings and campuses.
Our efforts don’t stop there. We are increasing security training during employee orientation and developing guidelines for active shooter drills. And, each market is encouraged to build close relationships with local police, firefighters and EMS for greater on-campus presence.
Maintaining a safe workplace requires everyone’s help and vigilance. If you see something out of the ordinary or that doesn’t seem right, say something. To report an incident or for more information on any of these security measures, contact your CEO, local security team, or department leader.