Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control

29 QUALITY IMPROVEMENT & MEASUREMENT With workplace violence on the rise, some health systems are hiring experts to address it By Kelly Gooch and Nika Schoonover A mid increased calls to address workplace violence, some health systems are hiring personnel specifically to focus on the issue. e directors oen oversee areas of the organization related to safety and security. Take Chicago-based UI Health, which is recruiting for a director of hospital safety and workplace violence prevention. e new role brings safety and security functions under the purview of one person; previously those responsibilities were overseen by various individuals, from clinical safety to general security, Nick Haubach, chief administrative officer of UI Health, told Becker's. "With the creation of this role, we have the potential to strategically align safety initiatives across the entire hospital," he said. A dangerous trend Hospitals like UI Health are looking at these types of roles as workplace violence has climbed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nine in 10 healthcare workers have seen or experienced violence in the workplace, according to a survey released in May by employee insight platform Perceptyx. And the American Hospital Association and other provider groups are urging Congress to enact a bill to protect healthcare workers from violence that is modeled aer protections for aircra and airport workers. River Meisinger, vice president of executive search with AMN Healthcare/B.E. Smith, views security and workplace violence prevention as interwoven issues. For that reason, leaders with experience in security or with a law enforcement background might be sought by health systems looking for someone to oversee workplace violence prevention efforts, he said. Mr. Meisinger said these leaders sometimes also take on emergency preparedness and focus on ensuring the organization is prepared for events such as mass shootings. "It isn't always that case," he added. "But being able to put the health system in a place of preparedness at all times is the primary responsibility of this specific leader." Building 'from the point of care up' At UI Health, Mr. Haubach said a key part of the director role will be to coordinate with campus partners. "Because UI Health is part of the University of Illinois Chicago, this structure is appealing to us because it creates a standard pathway for engaging with university-provided services, such as police and facilities, for example," he said. Mr. Haubach said the director will also partner with hospital safety committees, such as the organization's workplace violence prevention subcommittee. "Violence against healthcare workers is a serious issue across healthcare, and at UI Health, we think that building workplace violence prevention into the foundation of this position ensures this is a lens through which we can continually evaluate and improve all of our safety standards, protocols and initiatives," he said. UI Health is not alone. In August, Advocate Aurora, a health system with dual headquarters in Milwaukee and Downers Grove, Ill., appointed Mark Concordia as executive director of workplace violence prevention and security support services. Prior to his appointment, Becker's spoke with Randy Stephan, vice president of security at Advocate Aurora, about the new role. "What we're looking for in our director is someone who has had specific, tailored expertise in threat assessments, threat management and then LGBTQ+ patients receive different level of care, one-third of physicians say By Kelly Gooch A bout one-third of physicians see disparities in LGBTQ+ medical care due to patients' sexual orientation or gender identity, according to an Aug. 9 Medscape report. The report is based on a survey of more than 2,340 physicians in more than 29 specialties. Data was collected from Jan. 22 to March 2. Four other findings on LGBTQ+ issues in the workplace: 1. Fifty-two percent of physicians younger than 45 say LGBTQ+ patients receive a different level of medical care because of their status, compared to 30 percent of physicians older than 45. 2. Seventy-five percent of male physicians say LGBTQ+ patients experience discrimination, compared to 84 percent of female physicians. 3. Forty-four percent of male physicians say LGBTQ+ people currently have adequate rights and equality, compared to 33 percent of female physicians. 4. Sixty-six percent of physicians say they have helped raise money for LGBTQ+ causes. n

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