Okanagan hospitals among facilities getting more security

The B.C. government is updating its protection model for the health care sector, and the hospitals in Vernon and Kelowna will be among 26 facilities benefiting from the hiring of new staff.

Vernon Jubilee Hospital and Kelowna General Hospital have been determined in need of improved security to protect health care workers from acts of violence, and the province will be rolling out new security model to offer increased protections for workers and patients.

“We know that health care employees experience more workplace violence than workers in other sectors; we know most health care employees have experienced or witnessed violence in their workplaces, and we know workplace violence significantly affects their physical and mental health, requiring health care employees to take time off work — or worse — leave the health care field entirely,” Health Minister Adrian Dix said.

“Making our health care facilities free of violence for employees and the patients who count on that requires a comprehensive and coordinated approach,” Dix added. “We will be implementing an innovative security model, called the Relational Security Model, in 26 health care settings across all health authorities, hiring 320 in-house protection service officers and 14 violence prevention leads to ensure security personnel have an acute awareness of patients and their surroundings.”

Also moving to the enhanced protection model are Penticton Regional Hospital and Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops (see the complete list below).

The province did not specify how many security personnel would be provided to each site.

The new staff will undergo training based on trauma-informed practice, which integrates knowledge of how people are affected by trauma into procedures, practices and services.

It’s expected the new program will not only help protect individuals in health care settings, but also improve the staffing levels in B.C.’s health sector.

“Workplace injuries, including those relating to violence, are contributing to worker burnout and compounding our staffing crisis, so these investments in worker health and safety today will help our efforts to retain skilled staff and recruit health care workers we need in the future” Meena Brisard, secretary-business manager for the Hospital Employees’ Union, said.

“They will also make health care safer for patients and the public by re-focusing our violence prevention efforts and recognizing trauma and de-escalating violence.”

The hiring and training processes are now underway, with the goal of having the 320 security personnel and 14 violence prevention leads hired within the fiscal year, which ends March 31, 2023.

The province estimates it will cost $4.17-million to hire and train the new staff.

The 26 health care facilities benefiting from the new protection model are:

• Interior Health
  • Vernon Jubilee Hospital
  • Kelowna General Hospital
  • Penticton Regional Hospital
  • Royal Inland Hospital
  • Cariboo Memorial Hospital
  • East Kootenay Regional Hospital
  • Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital
• Provincial Health Services Authority
  • B.C. Women’s Hospital/BC Children’s Hospital
  • Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre
• Fraser Health
  • Burnaby Hospital
  • Chilliwack General Hospital
  • Delta Hospital
  • Langley Memorial Hospital
  • Peace Arch Hospital
  • Royal Columbian Hospital
  • Surrey Memorial Hospital
• Island Health
  • Cowichan Lodge Tertiary Mental Health Facility
  • Saanich Peninsula Hospital
• Northern Health
  • Mills Memorial Hospital
  • Prince Rupert Regional Hospital
  • University Hospital of Northern British Columbia
• Providence Health Care
  • Mount Saint Joseph Hospital
  • St. Paul’s Hospital
• Vancouver Coastal Health
• Lions Gate Hospital
• Richmond Hospital
• Vancouver General Hospital