The Human Reality of Workplace Violence in Healthcare

By Mary Jagim, MS, RN, CEN, FAEN

I've spent more than 25 years in emergency nursing, and if there's one thing I wish more people understood about healthcare, it's this: Workplace violence is far more common than most people realize.

For much of my career, it was simply accepted as part of the job.

In fact, my first experiences with workplace violence happened before I even became a registered nurse. During a leadership practicum, I worked night shifts in an emergency department that frequently cared for incarcerated patients. I remember feeling intimidated and uncertain. Experienced nurses, police officers, and sheriff's deputies taught me practical ways to protect myself, like always knowing where the nearest exit was and how to position myself safely in a room. Those lessons stayed with me throughout my career.

What many people don't realize is that healthcare workers often operate in highly emotional environments. Emergency departments, behavioral health units, and other frontline care areas frequently become the intersection of mental health crises, substance abuse, trauma, fear, grief, and sometimes violence. As I've often said, the emergency department has one foot in the community and one foot in the hospital. We see challenges that many people never witness firsthand.

Over time, repeated exposure to violence changes people.

You become more aware of your surroundings. You think about how to enter a room. You think about where you would go if a situation escalated. You become more experienced, but that doesn't mean the fear disappears.

There are incidents from decades ago that I still remember vividly because of how frightening they were. The reality is that when a healthcare worker is worried about their own safety, it becomes much harder to focus completely on the person they're trying to help.

That's why I've come to believe that staff safety and patient safety are inseparable.

When caregivers do not feel safe, everyone feels the impact. Staff experience higher levels of stress and anxiety. Retention becomes more challenging. Teams become stretched thin. Patients and families may witness frightening situations that affect their own experience of care. An unsafe environment doesn't stop with the individual involved. It affects the entire care setting.

The good news is that attitudes are changing.

For years, many incidents went unreported. Verbal threats, intimidation, and even physical aggression were often brushed aside because people believed nothing would change or because they worried they would be blamed. Today, healthcare organizations, professional associations, and legislators are bringing much-needed attention to the issue. That progress matters. But awareness alone isn't enough. Organizations must actively invest in creating safer environments.

That starts with leadership. Staff need to know their safety is a priority, not just in policy statements, but in everyday actions. It requires training, reporting processes, post-incident support, security planning, and a culture that encourages people to speak up when something doesn't feel right. Technology can play an important role, but it must be part of a broader workplace violence prevention strategy rather than viewed as a standalone solution.

Throughout my career, one lesson has remained constant: people need to know help is available when they need it.

When healthcare workers feel supported, they are better able to focus on what drew them to the profession in the first place, caring for others.

If I could leave healthcare leaders with one message, it would be this: investing in staff safety is not only about protecting employees. It's about protecting your patients, strengthening your culture, improving retention, and creating an environment where caregivers can do their best work.

And if I could leave frontline caregivers with one message, it would be this:

You are important, and your safety is important.

No healthcare worker should ever feel that violence is part of the job.

Learn how healthcare organizations are building comprehensive workplace violence prevention programs that combine culture, process, training, and technology to support frontline caregivers.