By Jeff Wardon, Jr., Assistant Editor

Three employees at Halifax Infirmary's emergency department were injured by a patient in a violent incident on January 29, Global News reports. Halifax Regional Police contained the threat and took the patient into custody. While details about the victims’ conditions or the weapon used remain undisclosed, the emergency room resumed normal operations later that evening. Police are continuing their investigation. 

Workplace violence is a prevalent issue in healthcare environments, as both the healthcare and social service industries experience the highest rates of injuries due to workplace violence, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Workers in these two industries are five times as likely to suffer a workplace violence injury compared to other workers overall. 

Related: AHA Sheds Light on Workplace Violence in Healthcare Facilities

One step healthcare facility managers can take to prevent violent incidents is by implementing a training infrastructure for de-escalation: 

• Assess risks: Do a comprehensive assessment of the organization’s safety and readiness to respond to an incident. Identify areas where de-escalation training is needed the most based on prior conflicts, staff feedback and the nature of patient populations. 
• Involve leadership: Getting the organization’s leaders to commit by prioritizing and supporting de-escalation training is a critical first step. Any data gathered from the risk assessment can offer insight into the current state of the organization and encourage leaders to highlight the importance of communication, empathy and training. 
• Establish a committee: Having different teams bring their own perspectives on ways to create a safer workspace is key, and it is also important to include people from each team in the workplace violence prevention committee. To form the main committee, organizations need to include representation from risk management, public safety, senior leadership, legal, human resources, social services and clinical staff areas.  
• Develop a plan and policies: Managers should work with the committee to create and implement a plan with clear markers and actionable steps to improve safety. The more specific the plan is, the more likely people will own their responsibilities. 
• Create a reporting system: Establish a reporting system for events related to patient escalation. The system needs to encourage open communication so the organization can keep on re-evaluating actions that are working, areas that need work and new or existing policies that aren’t passing muster. 

Another step that can be taken is implementing a system to flag patients with a history of violence, just as the Cleveland Clinic did in 2024. The clinic uses a standardized process to assess risks and provide support for staff encountering potentially violent situations. This approach led to a decrease in workplace violence reports and an increase in staff seeking help for dealing with challenging behaviors. 

Jeff Wardon, Jr., is the assistant editor for the facilities market.