Workplace Violence Prevention: Key Takeaways

Banner saying "Workplace Violence Prevention Series"

RECAP: SESSION 4 OF HIROC’s WORKPLACE VIOLENCE PREVENTION IN HEALTHCARE SERIES

On October 16, HIROC hosted the fourth and final installment of our Workplace Violence Prevention in Healthcare virtual series. 

A huge thank you to all the Subscribers who spoke at our four webinars and helped promote a culture of safety and respect. By sharing their expert knowledge and experiences, our healthcare community ultimately grows stronger and overall experiences are improved.

This level of knowledge sharing is what the HIROC advantage is all about – scaling what’s working, and helping Subscribers find ways to bring elements back to their own organizations. 

If you missed the live session or want to revisit the conversation, we’ve included a video to watch Part 4 of the series at the bottom of this post. If you missed sessions 1-3, you can also grab the highlights and watch the recordings using the links below.

We’ve also highlighted key takeaways from some of the great speakers in Part 4, including insights and strategies that reflect the momentum across our healthcare system to enhance workplace violence prevention efforts. 

“We cannot say that we’re offering safe care to patients until we know that the people we rely on to do that are also feeling safe.” 

– Catherine Gaulton, HIROC CEO

Using an Ethics-Based Approach at Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital (OSMH)

Laura Bradbury, Nicole Esler, and Emily Dillman from Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital kicked off the day by sharing an ethics-based approach to workplace violence. Here are a few highlights from their session:

  • OSMH’s Ethics Committee consists of interprofessional team members across the organization who support ethical decision making within patient care and organizational practices
  • A key tool used and promoted organizationally is the SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation) ethical decision-making framework. SBAR is a structured approach that helps guide team members and communicate ethical concerns clearly and respectfully
  • This framework is open to all staff and team members, not only clinical teams

“The SBAR gives everyone a voice to raise concerns and contribute to ethical patient-centered care.” – Laura Bradbury 

Some questions asked in the SBAR framework:

  • What are the facts?
  • Have I considered other perspectives?
  • What are the consequences of each of the options?
  • What is the implementation plan?

Implementing AI Weapon Scanning at Shared Health Manitoba

Cam Baldwin, Provincial Protection Services Lead from Shared Health Manitoba highlighted how his team is implementing an AI weapon scanning system for their largest hospital in the province – Health Sciences Centre Manitoba.

  • Project was piloted with different weapon scanning system vendors and the imperial data captured by the systems were compared
  • Lots of experimentation during the pilot phase where the sensitivity of systems was adjusted to find ideal settings and patrons were surveyed about their confidence and sense of security in the systems
  • Ultimately selected a vendor based on: Technology, customer service, customer testimonials, price, and buying Canadian   
  • Received positive feedback from staff who felt their concerns were being heard and strong public acceptance of the new system

Innovating with Weapons Detection at Windsor Regional Hospital (WRH)

WRH’s Michael Broderick, Manager, Safety and Security, detailed steps toward improving safety after a serious security incident, which included weapons detection as one critical component of a larger, layered, proactive strategy: 

  • WRH created a multidisciplinary working group that included representatives from security, occupational health, emergency department leadership, and senior management
  • Initiated a third-party risk assessment led by Windsor’s former Chief of Police, which resulted in many new safety recommendations, including the use of handheld metal detectors and installing weapons screening devices in their ED
  • Implementation of weapons detection included key considerations such as tools being intuitive for security and non-disruptive to patient care, and support to all patients, including those with mobility limitations or cultural/religious considerations
  • New process saw threats drop significantly, and both staff and patients offered positive feedback
  • The first priority of managing identified threats is ensuring guards are aware of the distinction between restricted and non-restricted weapons and establishing an escalation protocol

Watch Part 4: October 16, 2025

Looking for more from HIROC’s Workplace Violence Prevention Series?

A special thank you to HIROC’s Wendy Hooper, Senior Healthcare Risk Management Specialist, for being a strong host and leading this series filled with important learnings and stories. 

For more on this topic, check out our Risk Profile on Workplace Violence / Disruptive Behaviour.

If you have questions at any time, reach out to us at [email protected].