A recently published American Hospital Association (AHA) e-book featuring healthcare executives, and including DPR’s Deb Sheehan, addresses the rise of violent incidents in healthcare facilities, and how they can be mitigated through technology, training and community involvement within the healthcare facilities themselves.

Healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience workplace violence than employees in all other industries, according to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Safety considerations and planning for violence prevention should be considered throughout the planning, design and construction of building capital projects. Health systems can prioritize prevention and crisis response through an interwoven combination of design and technology solutions.

Hospitals are working to protect their staff and patients by identifying physical security risks throughout the building, modifying facilities and expanding security technologies, adding barrier protection and exit routes, and training staff in violence prevention. This executive dialogue explores how hospitals are using technology to mitigate risk, redesigning facilities and workflow processes to prioritize safety, and re-envisioning relationships with hospital security and others to support prevention and crisis response.

Identified best practices include:

• Comprehensive workplace violence-prevention programs
• Nonviolent crisis-intervention training
• Participating in Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design studies
• Evaluate and employ of weapons detection and real-time locating systems
• Financial incentives for security officer trainings
• Assess the vulnerability of off-site locations
• Consider the use of autonomous security robots
• Scale behavioral health care across community partners
• Use dogs as guardians and provide patient comfort