According to the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, there were more than 4,000 reported incidents of workplace violence against Canadian nurses between 2008 and 2013, and still, sources in the industry believe that these types of incidents are woefully underreported.
“Violence is by far the biggest issue in healthcare,” says Jeff Young, CHPA, executive director, Lower Mainland Integrated Protection Services at Fraser Health, Provident Health Care, Provincial Health Services Authority and Vancouver Coastal Health, based in Surrey, B.C.