Windsor-Essex Registered Nurses Launch Anti-Violence Campaign

WINDSOR – Far too often, Registered Nurses (RNs) and front-line health-care professionals experience violent attacks at the hands of patients and their families. Now, RNs working in Windsor-Essex are launching a new public awareness campaign to highlight the risk of workplace violence in health care.

Ontario Nurses’ Association (ONA) Local 8 members have developed four new commercials highlighting the issue with a view to ending this serious problem. ONA President Vicki McKenna, RN, has praise for the local nurses and their campaign.

“RNs are caregivers,” she said, “and we go to work each day to help their patients heal, not to be beaten and assaulted. These commercials are powerful and will help people understand the very real risk to RNs and health-care professionals – and consequently, to patients – with a view to prevention.”

Windsor Regional Hospital CEO David Musyj has also expressed support for the campaign. “Believing that violence against RNs and health-care professionals doesn’t exist won’t help eradicate the attacks,” he said. “The only way we will end workplace violence in health care is to take the necessary steps – proactively – to prevent it. It cannot be stressed enough that when our care providers are at risk, our patients also suffer…I commend ONA and our nurses for their efforts to keep this issue top of mind.”

Making health-care safe entails training, safety planning, having strong policies in place and identifying risks to patients and staff, notes Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital CEO Janice Kaffer. “All of that, though, won’t be enough unless people feel they can come forward when violence happens and be heard without judgement or retribution.” Kaffer supports the ONA Local 8 campaign, and has committed, “as a Registered Nurse and the CEO of HDGH that our hospital will be safe from violence and from all fear of reporting it.”

The first in a series of four ads will begin airing in the Windsor-Essex region today. They can also be viewed at https://youtu.be/GjM5_BiFWP8.

ONA is the union representing 65,000 registered nurses and health-care professionals, as well as 16,000 nursing student affiliates, providing care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, clinics and industry.

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For more information:

Susan Sommerdyk: (519) 995-0252

Sheree Bond: (416) 964-8833, ext. 2430; cell: (416) 986-8240; shereeb@ona.org