Workplace Violence Safety Investments Deliver Results
From left: MaineHealth Waldo Hospital Security care team members Scott Herbert, lead security officer; John Poulin, security officer; and Matt Shaw, supervisor, stand in front of MaineHealth Waldo Hospital in their new uniforms.
Workplace Violence Safety Investments Deliver Results
From left: MaineHealth Waldo Hospital Security care team members Scott Herbert, lead security officer; John Poulin, security officer; and Matt Shaw, supervisor, stand in front of MaineHealth Waldo Hospital in their new uniforms.
Addressing workplace violence remains a top priority in ensuring our hospitals are safe environments for both care team members and patients. To support of this key pillar of the MaineHealth Strategic Plan, MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital (MHPBH) and MaineHealth Waldo Hospital (MHWH) continued to implement safety enhancements throughout the past year.
Since initial safety assessments and improvement work began in FY23, initiatives have been implemented at a rapid pace, with more than 394 completed at MHPBH and 344 at MHWH. Many more are currently in progress, with 91 underway at MHPBH and 69 at MHWH.
“Our care team members deserve to feel safe and supported every day they come to work. Safety continues to be one of our top priorities and we’ve invested more than $600,000 in prevention and response technology since the start of this work in FY23.”
– Tyson Thornton, PharmD, FACHE, senior director of operations for MaineHealth Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals
As a result of these investments, MaineHealth Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals experienced zero days of lost work time from workplace violence-related injuries in FY25. “This is a number that is tracked closely and is a marker of how well our technology and training programs are working for our care team members,” said Thornton. “While it may not be possible to fully prevent violence in the workplace, it is essential that we limit and prevent injury to our care team members.”
To that end, MaineHealth Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals have made a number of recent safety enhancements across their facilities, with more underway. Timeout tools have been implemented in both emergency departments to encourage cross-department collaboration and deliberate action to reduce injuries and promote safer responses in high-pressure situations.
Security teams received updated uniforms, reflecting a cohesive and professional look across the system. The uniforms now include level 3A protective ballistic vests, featuring stab-proof plates, that offer an added layer of protection for essential personnel. In addition, both security teams have undergone hands-on safety training through AVADE, a nationally recognized expert in workplace safety, and will soon implement new software to enhance event tracking and documentation of their daily efforts.
Significant investments have also been made in the hospitals’ external health centers, including the installation of functional panic buttons and hard barriers with locking doors to separate waiting areas from clinical spaces. Technology upgrades now allow security officers to receive real-time alerts when exterior or routinely locked doors are left unsecured or propped open, enabling swift risk mitigation.
Looking ahead, MaineHealth has finalized a contract to provide mobile panic buttons to 500 lone workers in FY26. These individuals, who often work independently in the community, will benefit from enhanced access to safety resources, ensuring they are supported even outside traditional care environments.
“I’m very proud of the collaboration between our teams and departments,” said Thornton. “To see how far we’ve come in such a short period of time would not be possible without their commitment.”
Workplace Violence committee achieves milestones
MaineHealth Pen Bay and Waldo Hospitals’ Workplace Violence committee (WPV) has continued to progress toward hitting MaineHealth’s imperatives, targets that guide the effectiveness of the local WPV team and its membership. Four of the following six imperatives have been achieved during FY25:
- Achieve appropriate membership of our local workplace violence council, ensuring diverse group representation. (Achieved)
- Assess and manage threats with by-name granularity to prevent future harm or risk to others. (Achieved)
- Identify and implement site-based enhancements that promote workplace safety and meet goals associated with WPV prevention and mitigation. (In-Progress)
- Contribute to Threat Assessment Team (TAT) methodology to complete a Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) process with each individual threat made to our care team, allowing for appropriate planning and mitigation when threats are received. (Achieved)
- Be a repository for site/entity leadership for all WPV issues allowing care team members a safe place to voice concerns, share feedback and celebrate wins. (Achieved)
- Operate in alignment with system initiatives to ensure alignment and consistency in how WPV is both mitigated and responded to. (In-Progress)