In 2020 the public is visiting hospitals and emergency departments more than ever. An unfortunate parallel increase can be seen in cases of violence against healthcare workers. What are the immediate and long term costs of workplace violence on healthcare organizations? And more importantly, what can be done to minimize these costs and protect healthcare workers against the steady rise in workplace violence?
What does violence against healthcare workers look like? And who is experiencing it? Violence against healthcare workers includes verbal threats and physical attacks by patients and coworkers. On average 21% of registered nurses and nursing students report being physically assaulted at work. 50% report being verbally abused. Workplace violence within the healthcare industry often goes unreported for a variety of reasons (lack of a reporting policy, lack of faith in the reporting system, fear of retaliation, etc.) so one can expect these statistics to be much higher in reality.
Immediate impacts and costs of workplace violence in healthcare. Absenteeism and medical care related to violence against healthcare workers are two immediate costs healthcare organizations incur. Violent instances within the workplace commonly result in missed days of work. In fact, within the healthcare and social assistance sectors, 13% of all days away from work were the result of workplace violence. Healthcare workers who experience workplace violence utilize roughly 112.8 hours per year of sick, disability, and leave time. Overall, absenteeism related to workplace violence cost hospitals $53.7 million per year. Additionally absenteeism places compounding stressors on staff members who are called upon to cover the shifts and duties of the absentee. Healthcare organizations also face the medical costs associated with instances of violence against healthcare workers. A study conducted in 2014 at a large U.S. urban/community hospital system showed that 2.1% of its nurses reported injuries from inpatient violence. 54 of these injuries resulted in average medical costs of $2,631 per injury, with an additional $508 in indemnity costs ($3,139 per incident).
Long term impacts and costs of workplace violence in healthcare. The American Nurses Association (ANA) found that less than 20% of nurses surveyed in 2001 felt safe in their current work environment. Repeated exposure to violence within the workplace leaves healthcare workers grappling with depression, anxiety, and physical/emotional distress. As a collective, healthcare worker teams experience burnout, consistent turnover, low departmental morale, and overall job dissatisfaction. With violence against healthcare workers continuing to rise it’s no surprise that RN turnover rates are following suite, 17.2% in 2015. The cost of RN turnover can have a profound impact on already diminishing hospital margins. The average cost of turnover for a bedside RN ranges from $37,700 to $58,400 resulting in the average hospital losing $5.2M – $8.1M.
“The value hospitals and medical centers place on their people will have a direct correlation to their commitment, confidence and engagement. Enhancing culture and building programs to reinforce these values is critical to driving retention” (quote from the 2016 National Healthcare Retention & RN Staffing Report).
What can be done? To strengthen their bottom line, it is within a hospital’s best interest to focus on providing a reliably safe work environment for their staff. This includes the examination of three key areas pertaining to workplace violence ….
If you are interested in learning more about how 911Cellular’s solutions can help reduce workplace violence for your healthcare system, please visit our website at 911cellular.com