A new report from the Canadian Federation of Nurse Unions found that violence against nurses has increased in the past two decades.  Nurses in every health care sector are being punched, kicked, spat on and sworn at. It is time to speak up and take action. 

Read the report and find out whether it applies to health professionals you know.  Then demand change at the provinical and federal level. Here are some of the things CFNU recommends that the government does:.

Provincial/territorial governments:

  • Strengthen and improve OH&S legislations so as to create safe workplace standards for health care workplaces.
  • Ensure meaningful and consistent enforcement and reporting ,as well as strong language around the prevention of violence and bullying in health care workplaces, through risk assessments, education, training and emergency preparedness.

Federal government

  • Ensure charges are laid, when appropriate, under Bill C-45, otherwise known as the “Westray Bill” (Section 217.1 of the Criminal Code), against organizations and individuals if they fail to ensure the safety of workers and the public.
  • Amend the federal Criminal Code (Section 269.01) to require a court to consider the fact that the victim of an assault is a health care worker to be an aggravating circumstance for the purposes of sentencing.
  • Include health care workers and physicians in the federal PTSD framework across Canada.