DE-ESCALATE OR DISENGAGE? THAT IS THE QUESTION

Workplace violence is a serious issue in healthcare settings, with healthcare workers at an increased risk of experiencing violence from patients, their families, or other staff members. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), healthcare workers are four times more likely to experience workplace violence than workers in other industries.

We know all too well that Hospitals are high-risk environments where staff are exposed to violent and aggressive patients, family members, and other visitors. In addition, recent high-profile events, such as acts of extreme violence, are driving employee and physician’s concerns for safety. But security is only one piece of a Healthcare organization’s Workplace Violence Prevention & Intervention (WPVPI) Program.

Workplace violence is a serious concern for employers and employees alike, and developing effective prevention and intervention programs is critical for maintaining a safe and secure work environment. While established guidelines and regulations exist for these programs, many organizations struggle with implementation and efficacy. In this article, we will explore the most common problems with workplace violence prevention and intervention programs and how regular training and communication tools like newsletters, short videos, and posters can help to keep awareness front of mind for the enterprise.

Many organizations wrestle with the concept of business travel in combination with leisure travel (aka.“Bleisure”). From a Travel Risk Management (TRM) perspective, there are three initial considerations to keep in mind that may help address the issue and lessen how abstract it might feel to manage.

A Travel Risk Management (TRM) policy is centric to business travel. It outlines the high-level safety and security aims for travel and overarching guidance regarding how that is to occur. It’s not uncommon for this policy to be embedded within a Travel and Expense policy, though best practice is to have it standalone. Furthermore, if there are other Risk Management policies for the organization, this one should be consistent. To that end, organizations should look at the safety and security of individuals regardless of where they’re working and have policies like this all consistent with that objective.

NOW MORE THAN EVER, AS ORGANIZATIONS ARE OPENING THEIR TRAVEL PROGRAM BACK UP, IT’S TIME TO FOCUS ON PROTECTING WHAT MATTERS MOST.

Threat Assessment is not the same as Profiling. This is not true. Threat Assessment is, in actuality, the “antithesis of profiling.” Profiling involves generalizing about an individual actions/behavior based on the individual’s similarity to high-risk groups; it is an inductive process which is not generally useful when potential threats or acts, of Intentional or Targeted Violence.

Within the collective process of Workplace Violence Prevention and Intervention (WVPI), the employment of a robust Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) program cannot be stressed enough. BTAM is continuing to be adopted in many arenas throughout society: schools, businesses, communities, government agencies, non-profits, faith-based organizations, and more. Its utility is becoming increasingly recognized. After acts of mass shootings, and other extreme violence events, it’s common for warning signs to be uncovered that identified an individual was progressing towards their crime. A unique factor about BTAM is that it seeks to identify whether someone may be progressing towards intentional/targeted violence before an incident occurs. Organizations are commonly challenged with circumstances where one’s behavior is inappropriate or concerning, but it doesn’t rise to the level that allows law enforcement to intervene. This is the space that those responsible for BTAM commonly operate. Here’s three key concepts that are centric to implementing a BTAM program.

Threat Management Teams are proven to reduce risks and costs to the organization through more efficient detection and response.

Every new year brings the opportunity to refresh. From a Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) perspective, 2023 brings a fresh opportunity to look ahead at how Threat Management Teams (TMT) can continue to keep those in organizations and communities safe. A large part of BTAM is the ongoing programmatic development and upkeep over the—the Threat Management program. Threat Assessment is the process to identify the potential dangerousness of threats and threatening behavior, while Threat Management is the program that seeks to employ intervention strategies to ensure these issues don’t get lost over time—because behavioral issues rarely go away on their own. To that end, here are three things TMTs can do in 2023 to build upon 2022.

There tends to be a theme regarding Workplace Violence Prevention and Intervention (WVPI) training within organizations that lack a comprehensive program. Commonly, organizations have a WVPI policy. Many may also provide optional training and, on occasion, mandatory training. However, training often lacks key context. Namely, training may be provided about active assailant response while making little or no mention about the WVPI policy and other prevention considerations. To maximize the effectiveness of a WVPI program, policy and procedures must be paired with training to generate awareness and enterprise-wide integration. In other words, training is intrinsic to comprehensive WVPI.

As we empower individuals to build a strategy that protects their safety and security, it becomes apparent that it's one thing to tell them what it means to be proactive, use empathy and de-escalate, but understanding how to apply the tools and techniques is another. The true challenge lies in empowering an individual to become critical stakeholders in a safe work environment, one that's free from intimidation and violence. Without the benefits of training, one could easily find themselves immersed in a situation that seems unmanageable and out of control, which is the exact thing we are trying to prevent in the first place.

When you take a few extra steps to integrate safety and security strategies into your daily life, you’ll be better prepared to avoid common pitfalls and anticipate a range of possible threat scenarios. Personal vulnerability is easily amplified by distractions, preoccupations, and inattentiveness—all of which signal an easy target to someone with criminal intent. But when you remain alert to your environment, taking note of anything out of the ordinary, you’ll become “situationally aware.” And that’s important because acts of violence are often detectable before they occur…if you stay alert to the warning signs. There are simple steps you can take to stay vigilant, like staying alert to suspicious activity or behaviors in public areas. By becoming a hard target, you can make yourself unattractive to someone planning a crime.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence,10 million people a year are physically abused by an intimate partner, and over 20 thousand calls are placed daily to domestic violence hotlines. Recent statistics continue to show that 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men will experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. An inability for a victim to interact with others seems only to empower an abuser, as demonstrated by the 30% increase in domestic violence cases during the mandated pandemic lockdowns. The lockdowns resulted in job loss and increased stress and anxiety levels, and deprived victims of what may have been their only safe haven—their workplace. It further isolated them from others who may have detected the signs of abuse or violence.

“Hey, good job on the presentation…you did surprisingly well.” “Why do you always dress like a granny?” “You need to do it as I told you!” “You’re useless!” “It’s your fault the project failed!” If you were playing the game show Jeopardy, these comments would fit nicely into a category titled “Examples of what a bully might say.” Disturbingly, a 2021 Workplace Bullying Survey reported that 79.3 million U.S. workers were impacted by bullying.

In today’s times, it’s commonplace to leave a job to pursue additional challenges, pay increases, more independence, or a different work environment. With companies competing to recruit skilled individuals, those opportunities remain on the upswing for those interested. At the same time, however, are individuals who harbor ill will and deliberately commit a malicious act toward their employer or the organization. It’s at that decision point where these individuals become known as Insider Threats.

A typical workday in the life of a woman is filled with cell phone calls, text messages, meetings, deadlines, clients, and countless other things. But oftentimes missing from that list of “must do’s” is personal safety. It’s something that should be prioritized throughout the day, especially if you’re employment requires traveling to multiple worksites or client locations or business travel. But in truth, it generally takes a back seat for many of us.

Organizations are repeatedly reminded of the growing trend of financial costs, injuries and potential fatalities caused by workplace violence. Whether it’s a story on the nightly news or an incident in or near your workplace, it remains an issue that employers can no longer ignore. The question, then, becomes, "what can organizations do to mitigate this problem?" Some employers are having trouble deciding how to initiate conversations on their level of risk for an active assailant, partly because of their concern that it may promote fear in their employees. With the sad realization that workplace violence is not going away, more organizations are making the choice to take positive steps to prepare their workforce. Nearly two million workers in the American labor force are reportedly victims of a workplace violence incidents per year?

Security Professionals: Is your organization taking measures to protect and train your personnel that don't work in your physical location? In this video CPPS' Dave Benson, MS, CTM covers how to protect your personnel in a hybrid work environment.

Did you know CPPS offers a training program made specifically for your hybrid personnel? Email info@cpps.com to review this program.

#workingfromhome #workfromhome #workplacesafety #safeworkplace #cpps #workplaceviolenceprevention

But what if it is something? CPPS calls those subtle, but important, indicators that point to the possibility that something’s wrong as Behaviors of Concern. Such disruptive, aggressive, hostile, or emotionally abusive behaviors generate anxiety and create a climate of distrust.They can even be indicative of someone who is on a “Pathway to Violence.”