By Mackenna Moralez, Associate Editor

There has been an uptick in violence against healthcare workers in recent years. A survey by Critical Care Medicine found that 25 percent of healthcare workers were willing to quit their jobs because of the issue. 

Healthcare workers are four times more likely to fall victim to verbal or physical abuse than workers in any other industry, according to The Joint Commission.  Even so, the number could even be higher because statistics indicate many incidents go unreported.   

They survey found that 73 percent of respondents had experienced violence over the last year. The most common reported act was verbal abuse, such as threats (63 percent) and physical abuse, such as slapping or punching (39 percent). According to the study, patients and family members were more likely to commit the acts of violence.  

A majority of the incidences have either stayed the same (39 percent) or increased (36 percent) throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of the more frequent violent outburst, 48 percent of respondents said that they had decreased job satisfaction. 

Some states have gone as far as passing legislation that makes it a felony to harm healthcare workers. Meanwhile, some organizations are encouraging employees to wear an alarm button that identifies the location of employees who press the alarm and alert security personnel for help.   

Mackenna Moralez is the associate editor of the facilities market.