Healthcare facilities must often deal with the results of violence outside their walls, but sometimes the violence seeps into the healthcare environment itself, as with instances of domestic or gang violence that continue into a facility. In recent years violent crime in hospitals has increased 200% and the rate of non-fatal assaults on healthcare workers is much higher than the rate of non-fatal assaults for all private-sector industries combined. Clearly, healthcare workers must empower themselves to be prepared against possible violence.

This two-part series provides healthcare workers with the education needed to identify potential sources of violence and effective strategies to prevent and reduce violence in the healthcare setting. In this way learners will be better equipped to ensure their own safety, as well as that of their coworkers and patients.

There are two 17-minute programs in this series:

EMPOWERING YOURSELF TO BE PREPARED
This program focuses on identifying potential sources of violence and conditions that can predispose to violence to reduce the risk of assault and empower the learner to be prepared.

After completing this course, the learner should be able to:
*Identify the three primary sources of violence in healthcare
*Describe conditions in the healthcare environment that can be potential reasons for aggressive behavior
*Identify patient conditions that may predispose to violence

WHAT TO DO WHEN VIOLENCE OCCURS
This program demonstrates and describes the "four R’s" of dealing with violence through recognizing the signals, resolving conflicts, responding quickly and reporting and documenting after an event.

After completing this course, the learner should be able to:
*Recognizing the signals for escalating agitation and assaultive behavior or criminal intent
*Resolving conflicts by appropriately interacting with a hostile individual
*Responding quickly if the situation is out of your control
*Describe proper reporting and documenting after an event