'Enough is enough': Nebraska medical organizations issue statement on hospital violence

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – The Nebraska Hospital Association and the Nebraska Medical Association have issued a joint statement on an increasing trend of violence in hospitals.

The statement follows a recent string of mass shootings across the country, including one at a hospital campus in Oklahoma.

“We continue to grieve for our children and our healthcare heroes who have been impacted and traumatized by the most recent string of mass shooting events in the U.S.,” the statement read.

According to the Nebraska Hospital Association, the American Hospital Association recognizes June 3, 2022, as a national day of awareness to end violence in hospitals. The initiative called Hospitals Against Violence (HAV) aims to see best practices shared among hospitals for youth violence prevention, workplace violence prevention and the combatting of human trafficking.

“Gun violence continues to impact the lives of Americans nationwide and is becoming a true public health crisis,” the statement continued. “Mass shootings are happening all-too-often in public settings, including in our hospitals and medical offices – the very facilities whose mission is to help and heal.”

“In addition to these mass casualty events, our hospital and medical workers across the country have been seeing a steady increase in incidents of workplace violence. This week's mass shooting at a Tulsa medical campus, unfortunately, did not come as a shock to many of our health care professionals.”

During a press conference Friday, the Nebraska Hospital Association welcomed nurses and other medical professionals to share their thoughts on the increasing trends of violence.

Topics that were addressed included a recent attitude shift from patients and families toward health care workers, violence directed at hospital staff, family violence in hospitals and security issues.

“The Nebraska Hospital Association and the Nebraska Medical Association along with its member hospitals and physicians are committed to doing more to prevent violent incidents both inside health care facilities and in our communities,” the statement continued. “We will continue to work with community partners to address root causes of violence, such as childhood trauma, and will continue shaping a medical culture that integrates behavioral and physical health care.”

“On behalf of our members, both the NHA and NMA will use our collective voices to call for changes such as commonsense, responsible gun violence prevention. Gun violence in our country is a true public health emergency that requires all of us to come together to put an end to the recent tragedies we've seen play out. Bottom line, we have seen enough carnage at our hospitals and clinics, whether from treating countless shooting victims or from caring for coworkers victimized by workplace violence.

“Enough is enough. The time is now for meaningful change.”

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