Ohio may soon require hospitals and other healthcare environments to renew their safety and security protocols to better address the risk of workplace violence against workers.
HB 681, which was introduced on Monday, would urge health care employers to develop and implement a plan to prevent workplace violence within three months of the bill being adopted. The bill would require healthcare providers to review and make necessary updates to the plan at least every three years.
The plan shall describe strategies for dealing with safety aspects and factors that may contribute to or prevent the risk of violence in the workplace. These include the physical characteristics of the healthcare setting, such as security systems, alarms and emergency preparedness and available security personnel.
The facility must also consider staff patterns, patient classifications, and procedures to reduce employee time to work in areas at high risk of workplace violence, such as specific units or areas of the facility with uncontrolled access, late night or early morning shifts, and employee safety in areas such as surrounds the facility such as parking spaces.
The bill would require an annual review of the frequency of incidents of violence in the workplace, including identifying the causes and consequences of violence in the workplace and any new problems that contribute to violence in the workplace.
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