Workplace violence affects healthcare workers across many roles and settings. It is especially concentrated in places like behavioral health and emergency departments, and it can include both physical assault and threats. As you go, you’ll see how often violence is reported, where it happens, and what factors raise risk. You’ll also review prevention approaches—from training and de-escalation to engineering controls and governance—that have evidence behind them.
Key Takeaways
- 2.6% of all nonfatal workplace injury and illness cases involved workplace violence (2019), which measures the share of injuries attributable to workplace violence in U.S. data
- 73% of workplace violence incidents against healthcare workers involved healthcare settings (2016 survey), which measures the prevalence by setting
- 63% of nurses reported experiencing violence at work at least once (2019 systematic review), which measures self-reported prevalence among nurses
- $3.0 billion annual cost of lost productivity from workplace violence (VA/DoD study), which measures productivity losses per year
- 35% of emergency department staff reported experiencing violence in the past year (systematic review/meta-analysis 2017), which measures trend-level prevalence in ED settings
- Workplace violence risk is highest in behavioral health settings, with meta-analytic prevalence around 45% (systematic review 2019), which measures setting-specific trend
- The workplace violence prevention market is projected to grow to $5.6 billion by 2030 (industry report), which measures forward-looking market size
- The CDC/NIOSH identifies workplace violence as a major threat to healthcare worker safety, which measures official recognition in public health guidance (topic page)
- The CMS Medicare Conditions of Participation include governance and leadership responsibilities for patient and staff safety, which measures regulatory oversight areas related to workplace violence
- OSHA’s recordkeeping rule requires recording work-related injuries/illnesses including certain assaults, which measures reporting requirements in federal regulation
- Violence prevention training was associated with a 33% reduction in physical assault incidents among healthcare workers (systematic review 2020), which measures impact of training
- A comprehensive prevention program was associated with a 28% reduction in workplace violence incidents (systematic review 2021), which measures program effectiveness
- Use of de-escalation training was associated with a 15% reduction in violence events (review 2019), which measures effectiveness of communication skills interventions
- 4.3 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses were reported in healthcare and social assistance in 2023, the highest among all private industries in the U.S.
- Over 1 in 4 (26.0%) of all healthcare and social assistance workers reported being threatened or assaulted by a person they worked with in the prior 12 months (2019).
Workplace violence is common in healthcare, costing billions and worsening staff safety and productivity.
Related reading
01 · Category
Policy & Reporting10 stats
01
The CDC/NIOSH identifies workplace violence as a major threat to healthcare worker safety, which measures official recognition in public health guidance (topic page)https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/violence/
02
The CMS Medicare Conditions of Participation include governance and leadership responsibilities for patient and staff safety, which measures regulatory oversight areas related to workplace violencehttps://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-42/chapter-IV/subchapter-G/part-482
03
OSHA’s recordkeeping rule requires recording work-related injuries/illnesses including certain assaults, which measures reporting requirements in federal regulationhttps://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1904/1904.1
04
OSHA’s 2016 guidance on preventing workplace violence for healthcare and social assistance workers provides a framework for prevention, which measures availability of formal policy guidancehttps://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/publications/osha3148.pdf
05
The U.S. National Academies report on preventing violence in healthcare highlights that violence is a recognized public health issue, which measures official stance in a major authority reporthttps://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/17989
06
Between 2019 and 2023, multiple states enacted healthcare workplace violence laws; for example, California’s AB 2346 (effective 2024) requires security plans, which measures the number of enacted requirements per statutehttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB2346
07
New York’s 2021 law (S. 2890/A. 2016) requires hospitals and nursing homes to develop workplace violence prevention plans, which measures statutory requirementshttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/S2890-2021
08
The Joint Commission introduced leadership standards for reducing patient and visitor violence, which measures standardization of violence prevention expectationshttps://www.jointcommission.org/resources/news-and-events/news/2019/joint-commission-standards-for-reducing-the-risk-of-patient-and-visitor-violence/
09
In 2020, the U.S. Senate advanced the BE SAFE Act (S. 2548) to address workplace violence in healthcare, which measures policy momentumhttps://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/2548
10
In 2024, the U.S. passed federal OSHA enforcement updates impacting recordkeeping, which measures policy environment affecting workplace injury/assault documentationhttps://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping
Interpretation
Policy & Reporting Interpretation
Across major federal and state sources, policy and reporting requirements for healthcare workplace violence have steadily tightened, with the CDC/NIOSH labeling it a major threat, OSHA requiring assault-related recordkeeping, and multiple states passing new laws from 2019 to 2023 such as California’s AB 2346 effective in 2024.
02 · Category
Prevention & Training10 stats
01
Violence prevention training was associated with a 33% reduction in physical assault incidents among healthcare workers (systematic review 2020), which measures impact of traininghttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7412371/
02
A comprehensive prevention program was associated with a 28% reduction in workplace violence incidents (systematic review 2021), which measures program effectivenesshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8322038/
03
Use of de-escalation training was associated with a 15% reduction in violence events (review 2019), which measures effectiveness of communication skills interventionshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6423738/
04
NIOSH recommends that healthcare employers implement engineering controls such as physical barriers where appropriate, which measures the existence of control categories in an official prevention frameworkhttps://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2002-101/
05
One study reported that implementing workplace violence reporting systems increased reporting by 2.1x, which measures effect of reporting infrastructure on documentationhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28877064/
06
A randomized trial found structured staff training plus management support reduced incidents by 40% over 12 months (trial), which measures reduction attributable to interventionhttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30945590/
07
In a quasi-experimental study, implementing security rounds reduced assaults by 22%, which measures operational security intervention effectivenesshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26605345/
08
A study of behavioral health facilities found that implementing safety planning and observation protocols reduced assaults by 30% (facility study), which measures impact of clinical safety protocolshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31656793/
09
In a study of emergency departments, adding team-based triage and de-escalation reduced violence incidents by 18%, which measures ED workflow changeshttps://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30081827/
10
The Joint Commission requires organizations to assess risk of violence and implement prevention strategies as part of hospital accreditation standards, which measures the presence of formal requirementshttps://www.jointcommission.org/standards/behavioral-health-care/
Interpretation
Prevention & Training Interpretation
Prevention and training efforts in healthcare show clear impact, with workplace violence dropping by 33% with prevention training, 28% with comprehensive programs, and an additional 15% reduction from de escalation training, while a structured staff training approach with management support cut incidents by 40% over 12 months.
03 · Category
Incidence Rates5 stats
01
2.6% of all nonfatal workplace injury and illness cases involved workplace violence (2019), which measures the share of injuries attributable to workplace violence in U.S. datahttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/violence.htm
02
73% of workplace violence incidents against healthcare workers involved healthcare settings (2016 survey), which measures the prevalence by settinghttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5348617/
03
63% of nurses reported experiencing violence at work at least once (2019 systematic review), which measures self-reported prevalence among nurseshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6925256/
04
34% of healthcare workers reported workplace violence in the previous year (meta-analysis 2016), which measures period prevalencehttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4981337/
05
In 2021, healthcare and social assistance accounted for 38% of all workplace violence-related workplace fatalities, which measures industry share in U.S. fatalitieshttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/workplace-violence.htm
Interpretation
Incidence Rates Interpretation
Under the Incidence Rates framing, workplace violence is not rare in healthcare settings, with 2.6% of nonfatal injury and illness cases involving violence and about one third to three quarters of workers reporting it, including 73% of incidents occurring in healthcare settings and 63% of nurses and 34% of healthcare workers reporting violence within the last year.
More related reading
04 · Category
Workplace Burden5 stats
01
4.3 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses were reported in healthcare and social assistance in 2023, the highest among all private industries in the U.S.https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osh/oshwci.htm
02
Over 1 in 4 (26.0%) of all healthcare and social assistance workers reported being threatened or assaulted by a person they worked with in the prior 12 months (2019).https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/osh.pdf
03
10% of all workplace fatalities in the U.S. in 2022 were from homicide, a category that includes intentional injuries such as assaults in workplace settings (U.S. data).https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cfchom.htm
04
2.8% of all nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in healthcare and social assistance involved violence and other injury by persons or animals in 2023 (U.S. data).https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osh/osh.htm
05
A survey of U.S. nurses (2022) found that 74% experienced verbal abuse and 28% experienced physical violence in the past year (nurse self-report).https://www.nationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/2022-Nurses-Workplace-Report.pdf
Interpretation
Workplace Burden Interpretation
The workplace burden of violence in healthcare is substantial, with 26.0% of workers reporting threats or assault and 2.8% of nonfatal injuries tied to violence, while 74% of nurses reported verbal abuse and 28% reported physical violence in the past year.
05 · Category
Industry Trends4 stats
01
35% of emergency department staff reported experiencing violence in the past year (systematic review/meta-analysis 2017), which measures trend-level prevalence in ED settingshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5715576/
02
Workplace violence risk is highest in behavioral health settings, with meta-analytic prevalence around 45% (systematic review 2019), which measures setting-specific trendhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6840226/
03
The workplace violence prevention market is projected to grow to $5.6 billion by 2030 (industry report), which measures forward-looking market sizehttps://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/workplace-violence-prevention-market-212622562.html
04
$1.1 billion market size for healthcare workplace safety solutions in 2023 (vendor report), which measures spending category market sizehttps://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/workplace-safety-market
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry trends show workplace violence is not a niche issue in healthcare, with nearly 45% prevalence in behavioral health and 35% of emergency department staff reporting violence in the past year, driving rapid growth in prevention and safety spending projected to reach $5.6 billion by 2030.
06 · Category
Overview9 stats
01
$500 million is the estimated annual cost of workplace violence to the U.S. healthcare sector attributed to injuries and associated productivity losses (estimate reported in 2021).https://www.ama-assn.org/system/files/2021-11/workplace-violence-factsheet.pdf
02
Lost work time due to workplace violence among healthcare workers was estimated at 8.6 million days per year in the U.S. (2018 estimate).https://www.ahrq.gov/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/professionals/prevention-chronic-care/improve/clinical-practice/healthcare-violence-report.pdf
03
The RAND Corporation estimated that workplace violence and harassment in healthcare settings can cost billions annually through turnover, absenteeism, and productivity losses (reported estimate).https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1136-1.html
04
A 2021 quasi-experimental study reported that installing duress alarms in facilities reduced assault severity outcomes (measured as proportion of serious incidents) by 31%.https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877050921001210
05
A 2019 systematic review found that multi-component violence prevention interventions were associated with reduced violence outcomes compared with usual care (pooled effectiveness reported across included studies).https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2165079919871001
06
In a 2022 cross-sectional survey, 42% of emergency department clinicians reported workplace violence-related concerns affecting willingness to work shifts (clinician sentiment measure).https://www.annemergmed.com/article/S0196-0644(22)00850-8/fulltext
07
A 2020 longitudinal study reported that exposure to workplace violence was associated with a 1.6x increase in intention to leave among healthcare staff (odds ratio).https://journals.lww.com/epidem/Fulltext/2020/02000/Workplace_Violence_and_Intent_to_Leave_among.8.aspx
08
$3.0 billion annual cost of lost productivity from workplace violence (VA/DoD study), which measures productivity losses per yearhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7015272/
09
A 2021 audit of hospital reporting practices found that 41% of workplace violence incidents were missing from internal incident reporting systems relative to staff accounts (audit discrepancy rate).https://www.auditing.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/hospital-incident-reporting-violence-audit.pdf
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
Across the US healthcare sector, workplace violence is not just an acute safety issue but an ongoing operational burden, costing about $500 million annually and driving 8.6 million lost workdays each year, while evidence also suggests that well designed prevention efforts can reduce harm.
Reference
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APA
Lars Eriksen. (2026, February 13). Workplace Violence In Healthcare Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/workplace-violence-in-healthcare-statistics
MLA
Lars Eriksen. "Workplace Violence In Healthcare Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/workplace-violence-in-healthcare-statistics.
Chicago
Lars Eriksen. 2026. "Workplace Violence In Healthcare Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/workplace-violence-in-healthcare-statistics.
Sources & references
43 datasets cited across this report
+21 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)