Striking hospital employees sound alarm over workplace violence
Nurse Crystal Dhooghe is used to dealing with blood and broken bones in the emergency room.
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Dhooghe → strike → room
But she didn't expect to witness so much violence against her own colleagues.
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she → expect → colleagues
"I've seen nurses get shoved, pushed, scratched.
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nurses → see → ?
The biggest one is bitten," said Dhooghe, who works at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc, Mich.
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who → bite → Blanc
The prevalence of workplace violence in healthcare has fueled strikes in states such as Louisiana, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Michigan, where Dhooghe and many of her co-workers have been on the picket line since Labor Day of last year.
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Dhooghe → fuel → year
"People will question me and be like, 'Why are you still working in a place if you're treated like this?'" said Dhooghe, who gets by on strike benefits and working extra shifts at another hospital.
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who → question → hospital
The problem, she said, is that other hospitals aren't any better.
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hospitals → say → ?
"It's the same everywhere I go."
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I → go → ?
In a statement, Henry Ford spokesperson Dana Jay acknowledged violence against healthcare workers is a "national epidemic" and said the health system's efforts to address the problem include metal detectors, armed security officers trained to make "misdemeanor arrests" and de-escalation training.
"
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efforts → acknowledge → arrests
We have zero tolerance for violence of any kind," said Jay, asserting the strike is not about safety but is instead "simply an economic strike."
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strike → have → safety
Nationwide, hospital workers are seven times as likely to be injured on the job due to violent acts as members of the general working population, according to the most recent data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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workers → injure → Statistics
The outcry over workplace violence in healthcare is pitting workers' demands for better compensation and staffing against hospital operators pressured to cut costs.
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outcry → pit → costs
When ERs feel like "a powder keg"
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ERs → feel → keg
Violent outbursts are so common that they've been dramatized on the popular medical TV series The Pitt.
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they → dramatize → series
"Emergency rooms right now are like a powder keg," said Rachel Odes, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing.
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Odes → say → Nursing
In hospitals, a combative or violent patient is known as a "code gray."
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patient → know → gray
Outbursts can be spontaneous and unpredictable, making some almost impossible to prevent.
But research shows the risk of violence increases when hospitals are understaffed or employees are insufficiently trained or experienced.
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employees → make → violence
Mental health worker Andrew Kimball-Mirzaie said he got hurt in February 2024 at Butler Hospital in Providence, R.I.
He'd been working at the private psychiatric hospital for about six weeks and said he hadn't yet worked in the ER.
He said he was sent there to "monitor" a man in his 20s who was waiting for an inpatient bed.
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who → say → bed
The patient was alone in a back room watching a Knicks basketball game on TV, he recalled.
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he → watch → TV
Kimball-Mirzaie said he got the patient a drink and a snack.
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he → say → drink
They were watching the game when, suddenly, he said, the patient stood up and punched him in the face.
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patient → watch → face
He said the assault left him with a concussion and broken nose.
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assault → say → concussion
His injuries were documented in the hospital's incident log.
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injuries → document → log
"I understand that there is an inherent danger with the job," Kimball-Mirzaie said.
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Mirzaie → understand → job
He doesn't blame the patient, who was very ill at the time.
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who → blame → time
"We should have had at least another staff member with us," he said, "and I should have been adequately trained on the unit."
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I → have → unit
The attack emboldened Kimball-Mirzaie to join some 700 other unionized Butler workers last spring and summer in a months-long strike, which forced the hospital to close nearly half of its beds.
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which → embolden → beds
Service Employees International Union 1199 New England declared the strike a win.
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strike → declare → ?
Employees received wage increases that union leaders said would enable the hospital to attract and retain more staff.
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hospital → receive → staff
The hospital also agreed to provide financial support for workers violently injured on the job.
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hospital → agree → job
And the hospital and union agreed to jointly fund a "time bank" to supplement workers' compensation for injured workers who need more time to recover.
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who → agree → time
But five months later, a nurse supervisor at Butler had to call 911 because an unarmed patient in the hospital's ER was assaulting staff.
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patient → have → staff
According to the police report, by the time police arrested the patient, he'd injured two nurses, a security guard and a police officer.
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he → accord → nurses
"Butler recognizes the importance of being proactive in protecting those who provide care," Mary Marran, Butler's president and chief operating officer, said in a statement.
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Marran → recognize → statement
She added that hospital leadership meets regularly with staff to review safety measures and "identify opportunities to strengthen protection for everyone."
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leadership → add → everyone
The patient was charged with four counts of felony assault, including against the two nurses.
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patient → charge → nurses
The American Hospital Association has said punishment is key to preventing violence.
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punishment → say → violence
It has been lobbying Congress to make assaulting healthcare workers a federal crime that would carry up to 10 years in prison.
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that → lobby → prison
At least 45 states, including Michigan and Rhode Island, have enacted similar laws.
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states → include → laws
But workplace safety experts say there is no evidence that such laws have reduced the incidence of violence against healthcare workers.
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laws → say → workers
…and 16 more, not listed.
