Prompted by the death of a fellow nurse, California RNs are determined to protect healthcare workers from violence on the job.

The California Nurses Association began working with state officials in November to draft legislation that would address violence at hospitals, correctional institutions and other facilities.

The effort was spurred by the death of Cynthia Palomata, RN. Palomata died three days after suffering an attack in October at a California detention center, the district attorney’s office handling the case stated.

“This has been a critical issue facing nurses and healthcare workers for many years in terms of making sure the workplace is safe not only for themselves, but everybody — patients, the community and all the workers,” says Bonnie Castillo, RN, government relations director for the California Nurses Association.

Assemblywoman Mary Hayashi, D-Hayward, on Dec. 6 introduced Assembly Bill 30, which would bolster existing laws that require hospitals to have safety and security plans in place. The law would expand the types of security measures hospitals must take when updating security plans, as well as ensure employees receive proper training regarding violence prevention and response, says Kelly Green, regulatory policy specialist for the CNA. Hospitals also would be required to better acknowledge, investigate and report violent incidents.

The legislation also strives to protect RNs and other healthcare personnel who work in correctional facilities as Palomata did, Green says. Under the proposed law, the Correctional Standards Authority would be required to establish standards for safety and security plans created to protect healthcare workers in state and local correctional facilities from aggression and violence. Correctional treatment centers also are covered by the legislation.

Other key components of the law include making sure employees who are victims of workplace violence receive proper evaluation and treatment, Green says. Employees also would have the right to involve local law enforcement if necessary. The state also would be authorized to impose administrative penalties against hospitals that do not comply with the law, and hospitals would be required to report workplace violence incidents to the state. Castillo partly attributes violence against healthcare workers to drastic cuts in psychiatric programs and other social services at facilities.

“All of that has contributed to a higher level of desperation where families and patients are coming into EDs or various hospital settings often in understaffed situations,” Castillo says.

More than 50% of ED RNs who participated in an Emergency Nurses Association survey released in 2009 experienced violence by patients on the job, according to a news release. More than 25% of nurses surveyed had experienced 20 or more violent incidents in the past three years.

Castillo says the idea of the legislation isn’t to punish patients, but to prevent violent acts in healthcare settings from ever happening in the first place. “What we are not intending to do is criminalize patients, and the public,” she says. “As nurses, it’s paramount that we maintain our roles as advocates for patients and our community and ensure that have a safe and therapeutic work environment.”