Workplace Safety Champions: Strengthening safety culture through nurse engagement.

PURPOSE: Workplace violence is a growing concern in health care, disproportionately affecting frontline nurses and nursing assistants. Despite high prevalence, underreporting remains a barrier to effective prevention and response. This Workplace Safety Champion program aimed to increase reporting of violent incidents and strengthen a culture of safety.

METHOD: A multidisciplinary task force developed an evidence based Workplace Safety Champion course that emphasizes de-escalation strategies, reporting processes, and staff support. Champions were appointed across inpatient and emergency units and integrated into a hospital-wide Workplace Safety Champion Council. Program evaluation used course completion data and posttraining surveys.

RESULTS

The goal to train at least one champion in 90% of inpatient and emergency units was exceeded, with 98% of units represented (N = 93 champions). More than 85% of learners reported intent to change their response to workplace violence, and 90% endorsed improved knowledge of resources and de-escalation strategies.

CONCLUSION

The Workplace Safety Champion program successfully improved staff awareness, reporting, and engagement in workplace violence prevention. Embedding champions across units can serve as a sustainable strategy to strengthen safety culture and support frontline health care workers.