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Hazard Flagging as a Risk Mitigation Strategy for Violence against Emergency Medical Services
Justin Mausz1,2, Dan Piquette1, Robert Bradford3
1Peel Regional Paramedic Services, 1600 Bovaird Drive East, Brampton, ON L6V 4R5, Canada.
Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland)
|May 10, 2024
Summary
Hazard flagging aims to protect paramedics from patient violence. While it identifies potentially violent individuals, flagged incidents were associated with a higher risk of violence during subsequent paramedic care.
Area of Science:
- Emergency medicine
- Public health
- Occupational safety
Background:
- Paramedics face increasing violence, risking physical and psychological harm.
- Hazard flags are used to alert emergency medical services personnel to patients with a history of violent behavior.
- A novel violence reporting process integrated into electronic patient care records was implemented.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the effectiveness of hazard flagging as a risk mitigation strategy for paramedic violence.
- To analyze violence reports and hazard flag generation over a 13-month period.
Main Methods:
- Reviewed 502 violence reports filed between February 2021 and March 2022.
- Hazard flags were generated by paramedic supervisors in 20% of reported cases (n=99).
- Analyzed reasons for not flagging cases and the association between hazard flagging and subsequent violence.
Main Results:
- Hazard flagging was associated with an increased risk of violence during subsequent paramedic attendance (Odds Ratio [OR] 6.21, p < 0.001).
- Cases were often not flagged due to location limitations or supervisor discretion.
- The flagging process appears to reliably identify individuals with a propensity for violence towards paramedics.
Conclusions:
- While hazard flagging is linked to increased subsequent violence risk, it serves as a reliable method for identifying potentially violent patients.
- Further research is needed to refine hazard flagging protocols to enhance paramedic safety effectively.
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