Prevention and management of aggression in ... - WorkSafe Victoria

ToolT1Exposure to aggression risk calculatorThis risk calculator can be used across an organisation, in a specific departmentor unit, or with staff from a particular work or professional group to determine thelevel of training required. The aim of this calculator is to identify the type ofaggression staff are exposed to and the frequency of the exposure.It has been developed to enable staff to document experiences and/orperceptions of their exposure to client-initiated aggression and violence in theirwork environment as a means of determining the level of training required by workgroups or units in your organisation. It could be used in conjunction with a staffsurvey, or in isolation to provide a snapshot of a current situation.The results of the compiled data from this calculator should be reviewedin conjunction with incident and near-miss data reported formally within theorganisation, position descriptions and role expectations of staff and otherorganisational documentation, e.g. training and education records and healthand safety control measures that have been implemented.For example:• A survey of security staff might reveal exposure to ‘physical aggression’ ona weekly basis. This result would indicate this staff group require level 2training. However, a review of their position descriptions might reveal theyare required to participate in physical restraint of clients, removal of clientsfrom the premises and isolated patrols of the facility that place them at riskof assault. Clearly, a level 2 training program would not be appropriate forthis group of staff.• A survey of clerical staff might reveal that ward clerks, switchboard andreception staff identify exposure to ‘threat intimidation’ on a weekly basiswhile clerical staff with no day-to-day contact with the general publicidentify exposure to ‘minor verbal aggression’ bi-annually.• A survey of an aged care work unit might reveal that nurses identifyexposure to ‘high aggression extreme threat’ on a weekly basis while foodservices staff identify exposure to ‘verbal aggression’ on a monthly basis.However, far fewer incidents might be revealed if incident reporting datawas reviewed in isolation.In addition to identifying the level of training required by staff this simple surveycan reveal some systemic issues within an organisation.For example, it might identify:• A workforce skilled in defusing/de-escalating situations before theybecome violent.• A limited understanding of what constitutes an aggressive incidentbased upon the criteria used within the survey.• Issues associated with incident reporting processes.• Under-reporting of incidents.• Work practice issues within a work area that require furtherinvestigation (e.g. staff skill mix).Page 3 of 4WorkSafe Victoria Handbook / Prevention and management of aggression in health services 81