preprints.org > public health and healthcare > health policy and services > doi: 10.20944/preprints202402.0831.v1

Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Version 1 : Received: 12 February 2024 / Approved: 15 February 2024 / Online: 15 February 2024 (05:28:24 CET)

Paramedics are increasingly being subjected to violence, creating the potential for significant physical and psychological harm. Where a patient has a history of violent behavior, hazard flags - applied either to the individual, their residential address, or phone number - can alert paramedics to the possibility of violence, potentially reducing the risk of injury. Leveraging a novel violence reporting process embedded in the electronic patient care record, we reviewed violence reports filed over a thirteen-month period since its inception in February 2021to assess the effectiveness of hazard flagging as a potential risk mitigation strategy. Upon reviewing a report, paramedic-supervisors can generate a hazard flag if recurrent violent behavior from the patient is anticipated. In all, 502 violence reports were filed, for which paramedic-supervisors generated hazard flags in 20% of cases (n=99). In general, cases were not flagged either because the incident occurred at a location not amenable to flagging, or because the supervisors felt that a hazard flag was not warranted based on the details in the report. Hazard flagging was associated with an increased risk of violence during subsequent paramedic attendance (Odds Ratio [OR] 6.21, p

Paramedics; Emergency Medical Services; Violence; Workplace Violence; Occupational Health and Safety

Public Health and Healthcare, Health Policy and Services

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