After a doctor was killed and five other people were wounded during a attack in a Bronx hospital, healthcare worker safety is getting some increased attention, according to an article on the Kankakee Daily Journal website.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports that workers in the healthcare sector experience workplace-violence injuries at a rate of 8.2 per 10,000 works, more than four times higher than the average private sector rate.
OSHA doesn't currently require workplace violence prevention programs at hospitals, and only eight states, including Illinois, require them by state law.
In Kankakee County, for instance, both Riverside Medical Center and Presence St. Mary's Hospital have detailed emergency plans.