Violence Prevention & Mitigation
The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) is committed to a culture of safety, which includes keeping team members, patients/families, and the public safe from injury or harm.
The SHA Management System
We use a framework called the SHA Management System to help us monitor and improve all aspects of our delivery system.
The Safety Management gear of the SHA Management System is very relevant to violence prevention and mitigation. Other gears, like People-Centered Care, Problem-Solving Culture, and Leadership Behaviours and Practices, are also connected. You should get to know the SHA Management System and how the tools and practices can support your safety.
Violence is not acceptable and will not be tolerated in SHA workplaces.
Violence is the attempted, threatened, or actual conduct of a person that causes or is likely to cause injury, and includes any threatening statement or behavior that gives reasonable cause to believe that one is at risk of injury. ‘Injury’ means physical, psychological or emotional harm.
Violence applies to any situation where a person is threatened, abused or assaulted. Some examples of violence are:
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Spoken or written threats
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Verbal abuse (e.g., swearing, name-calling, slander)
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Intimidating or threatening gestures (e.g., shaking a fist, throwing objects, punching a wall)
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Physical attacks or assault (e.g., kicking, punching, pushing, biting)
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Showing or using a weapon like a knife or gun
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Sexual assault
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Racial and cultural violence
Everyone who works within the healthcare system has the potential to be exposed to violence, at all our locations and in the community.
Some team members face a higher risk, including individuals that provide direct care and/or work in close physical proximity to those we serve, as well as those working in higher risk locations.
Higher risk locations include those which provide detoxification, emergency or Mental Health and Addictions in-patient services. Additional risk can be present depending on crime levels in the local community, including violent crime.
The purpose of the SHA Violence Prevention & Mitigation Plan is to provide everyone with information on:
- How to prevent violence in healthcare settings
- How to report and respond when violent situations take place
- What support is available for victims of violence
The SHA Violence Prevention & Mitigation Plan is under development. Continue to use your former RHA established processes until provincial processes are established. The current version of the plan is focused on patient-to-worker and worker-to-worker violence. Work is underway to address other classifications of violence within the SHA and will be updated as it becomes available. Below you can view a timeline of key activities, including what is currently under development.
PLEASE NOTE: There are links within the SHA Violence Prevention & Mitigation Plan that require browsers such as Google Chrome to access.