Workplace violence has become a growing concern in the healthcare industry. According to OSHA, workplace violence includes any act of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening behavior that occurs at the workplace. To prevent such incidents from occurring, it is important to establish a comprehensive workplace violence prevention program and provide adequate training to employees.

Important steps to consider as your facility develops a workplace violence prevention program:

Step 1: Agree as an organization on the definition of workplace violence and what it includes.

Step 2: Establish a culture of safety, starting with a reporting system that is easily accessible to staff.

Step 3: Build a team to assist in creating policies and procedures.

Step 4:  Deploy hospital-wide training and resources. This includes all staff.

In 2024, SDAHO was awarded the South Dakota Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility grant to aid members with resources and training. This grant will help SDAHO gather member feedback, offer in-person training for Critical Access Hospitals, and provide useful resources to all members. Goals of providing these resources is to support members with the following:

Acknowledgment and Disclaimer: This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $866,675 with 0% percentage financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.

The information included in this website is not intended to be an exhaustive or exclusive repository of publicly available resources related to workplace violence prevention. Also, this website does not indicate an endorsement of the sources included or of any particular product, health care organization, or service, and should not be construed as a statement that the source, health care organization, or its products or services, are superior to those of another source. Many of the resources included on this website were not developed or validated by SDAHO. The approaches to workplace violence prevention included in this website are not inclusive of all organizational approaches that may be successful. Any strategies applied should be tailored by organizations to meet the unique needs of their settings, employees, and patient populations. By accessing and using the website and resources, the website’s users agree to make no claim of any kind against SDAHO for any and all damages that result from use or implementation of any website content. Users should be aware that, depending on the date they are viewed, some or all of the information contained in this website may not be up to date.