Odes R, Hong O, Harrison R, Chapman S. Factors associated with physical injury or police involvement during incidents of workplace violence in hospitals: Findings from the first year of California's new standard.
Am J Ind Med 2020;
63:543-549. [PMID:
32166835 DOI:
10.1002/ajim.23103]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2019] [Revised: 01/15/2020] [Accepted: 02/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Workplace violence in healthcare settings is known to be a costly and often underreported problem. In California, hospitals are required to report incidents of violence towards workers to the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration (CalOSHA) using an online reporting system that went into effect in 2017.
METHODS
Reports submitted to CalOSHA from July 2017 to September 2018 pursuant to this new requirement were analyzed using descriptive methods and logistic regression.
RESULTS
Four hundred eight hospitals submitted reports using the new incident reporting system. Behavioral health units had 1.82 times the odds of the reported incident resulting in physical injury compared to inpatient medical units, and investor-owned facilities had 2.43 times the odds of the reported incident resulting in physical injury compared to city or county-owned facilities. Inpatient and behavioral health units had significantly reduced odds of a reported incident resulting in police involvement when compared to other locations within the hospital.
CONCLUSIONS
These findings indicate that protections for healthcare workers deserve ongoing attention from stakeholders and legislators and provide insight into how healthcare facilities report incidents of violence towards workers.
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