It is only important to you, if it is important to you!

              
                It is only important to you, if it is important to you!

This saying" It is only important to you, if it is important to you!" has been around for a long time and it is so true. Think about it !
 I write about the violence that happens in the ER and of course  people need to realize that violence also happens on the hospital floors.
People focus on the ER because the ER is high risk .The ER is on the front lines, it never knows what is coming in the door ,the ER is not a controlled environment, anything  can happen at any time!
The floors WHERE THE EMERGENCY ROOM SEND THEIR PATIENTS is also in jeopardy. The ER sends admissions to the floor, it could be the same person that has caused havoc in the ER and  is now being transferred to the floor . If there is no communication about the patient causing trouble in the ER ,the floor has no idea that the patient could cause trouble on the floor.This person could be allowed in a 2 bed room with another patient.   . The nurses and medical assistants are also in harms way and there is no security on that floor to help them 24/7. When I worked in one of the hospitals they put the security guard in the ER 24/7 but never hired anyone else, soooooooo there were two guards to cover the entire facility !
That doesn't make any sense to me. While I am on this ,think about the same folks that assault the staff go to the xray area for catscans, xrays etc. but the tech is all alone with them. With  communication that the patient just assaulted someone, security, could stand close by.Many times the xray tech has the order for a patient and can't find a nurse or physician and takes the patient for the test . Now this person is in harms way.
 Does everyone know the sound of the alarm of the xray department???? The only reason I ask is : I was working one evening and the xray alarm went off and the staff didn't recognize that alarm,eventually we did and went into the department and found the patient was trying to assault the xray tech.
I feel that we are missing the fact ,that hospitals are not safe period.
Before I close for this blog, just to bring the point home. A house keeper was doing her rounds, pushing her cart and cleaning up things when someone came by and hit her on the head with a hard object.
No one is safe in the hospital and I think we need to work together to stop the violence.

Sheila Wilson R.N. BSN MPH

www.stophealthcareviolence.org