Seven steps to reducing violence in hospitals
Seven steps to reducing violence in hospitals
Violence can be reduced in hospitals only by addressing the issue head on, says Tony Kubica, a founding partner of Kubica Laforest Consulting in Warwick, RI, and formerly a hospital executive in charge of security.
Kubica makes the point that reducing violence in hospitals cannot be a piecemeal effort, but rather, it should be a focused effort with a specific goal. The first step in the effort should be hiring a director of security if you don't already have one, he says.
"This should not be a part-time job of the facility manager or anyone else," he says. "Also, this should not be a retirement job for someone in law enforcement unless the person has direct and relevant experience with security issues the type of issues that are outlined in the alert."
If a security problem exists in the hospital, Kubica says, it is critically important to take decisive and visible action to improve security.
"In our case, we removed the incumbent security firm providing service to the hospital and hired another firm, making a visible transition to the hospital staff," he says. "This can be a challenge in a small community, because there could be an effort to influence board members to hire certain individuals or certain contractors. This should be avoided and the board educated on the need and the best approach to address security needs."
Kubica summarizes the steps he used to improve security at his hospital, steps he says can be applied to any facility:
1. Identify that you have a problem.
2. Acknowledge that problem publicly. (At Kubica's hospital, it was difficult not to acknowledge the problem, because it became a matter of discussion on local talk radio.)
3. Involve the hospital community in active discussions and communication on what is being done and by when. Include the hospital board of directors, because their support for a transition will be important.
4. Take visible and decisive action to improve security.
5. Communicate the plan and its execution thoroughly and often in the organization and to the community.
6. Monitor and report results.
7. Take action to improve.
Violence can be reduced in hospitals only by addressing the issue head on, says Tony Kubica, a founding partner of Kubica Laforest Consulting in Warwick, RI, and formerly a hospital executive in charge of security.Subscribe Now for Access
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