'More care for those who care': is the message chosen for the awareness campaign launched by Emilia Romagna region on the occasion of National day against violence against health and social health workers, which is celebrated on Wednesday 12 March.

A common commitment and an invitation to recognize the enormous importance, value, and therefore respect, that must be reserved for those who take care of everyone's health, in a context in which, unfortunately, even in Emilia-Romagna the violence, physical or verbal, against healthcare personnel, is confirmed as a present phenomenon and growing, as evidenced by the data collected by regional monitoring systems.

In the regional territory, in fact, in 2024 le attacks on staff within healthcare facilities have increased by11,7% compared to the previous year, going from 2.401 to 2.682 cases. The increase concerns in particular the verbal aggression (+12,5%), while the most frequent ones have decreased serious physical injuries (-11,9%).

Data presented today in press conference in the Region, in Bologna, fromcouncilor for health policies Max Fabi, who also illustrated the prevention and protection actions implemented to counteract the phenomenon and the launch of the regional health service campaign.   

"Assaults, both verbal and physical, on healthcare and social-healthcare personnel represent a paradoxical and incomprehensible phenomenon, yet so frequent that it unfortunately deserves a National Day to keep attention high on the issue.– explains the councilor Fabi-. A very serious problem, which undermines the serenity of those who take care of our health every day and the effectiveness of our health system. The introduction, last year, of the regional platform SegnalER as a monitoring system for aggression, which allows operators to safely and immediately report episodes of violence, has played a fundamental role in making this phenomenon more visible and in allowing for more precise detection.".

"Time- he adds Fabi- we need to work on two fronts: trying to strengthen, with all the available tools and with the collaboration and commitment of the subjects involved, the safety of the operators and promote a culture of respect. For this reason, in addition to the measures already adopted, including advanced surveillance technologies, interventions as timely as possible, training courses and psychological and legal support for personnel who are victims of aggression, on the occasion of March 12 we are launching a communication campaign curated by the regional health service, with the aim of stipulating a sort of pact with the citizens”.

The campaign “More care for those who care” was in fact created to (re)-build a pact of trust, promote respect and spread awareness towards those who work for the health of each and every one. The use of plasters to represent the words "more" and "for" in the composition of the claim is iconic, as they intend to represent the desire to take care of the relationship between professionals and the population, in the awareness that against violence against health and social-health personnel the result is achieved together.

"It was important- concludes Fabi- the involvement of all actors within the Health Authorities to reduce the sense of impotence of those who find themselves facing similar situations, but to prevent episodes of violence there is a need to create widespread awareness. Every aggression is one episode too many".

Data on assaults in Emilia-Romagna

The data relating to assaults are collected by the Region and sent to the National Observatory on the safety of healthcare and social healthcare professionals as established by national legislation. The registration of reports is carried out directly by the Health Authorities: since 2024 ER signal, already used to detect reports of incidents relating to patient safety, it is also extended to the collection of reports of aggression and as a system for timely analysis, control and monitoring.

According to the data collected with this new regional system, in 2024 the nurses the most exposed category, representing 57,9% of the attacks, followed by doctors (13,6%) and give it socio-health workers (11,4%). But who are they, in general,the attackers? The majority are the users or patients themselves (62,6%), while in the remaining cases they are relatives, caregivers, acquaintances or strangers. The places where the episodes In absolute terms, the most frequent cases were found in hospital wards (32,4%), emergency rooms and local emergency services (24,1%), psychiatric and addiction services (17,2%), and outpatient clinics (11,7%).

Another relevant aspect concerns the involvement of female operators, which represent the 70,3% of cases of violence. However, in proportion to the number of employees, male operators are slightly more exposed, with a percentage of assaults equal to 3,7% compared to 3,5% of women.

Prevention and protection measures

In addition to the SegnalER platform, there are several actions implemented by the Healthcare and Hospital Companies to ensure the safety of healthcare workers, following the Regional guidelines: video surveillance and lighting systems have been strengthened and alarm buttons and shatterproof glass have been installed, particularly in high-risk areas such as emergency rooms; collaboration with law enforcement has been strengthened, activating bilateral protocols with police headquarters for a quicker and more effective response to episodes of violence. Another fundamental aspect concerns the psychological support and legal protection offered to workers who are victims of aggression. Much has also been done in terms of training and awareness of healthcare personnel, with training courses and a specific focus on prevention, effective communication and the management of critical situations. Furthermore, the topic of assaults has been included in the mandatory courses for new hires, with the aim of raising awareness right from the startor the staff on this issue.

How the “More care for those who care” campaign is being spread

Posters and video clips of the initiative are distributed in clinics and health service locations, starting from the Emergency Rooms.; Local Health Authorities and Hospital Authorities promote the contents through their own communication channels and a sponsored campaign by the Region is planned on the main social media; in addition, the affiliated pharmacies throughout Emilia-Romagna also contribute to the diffusion of the message.

To show support and strengthen mutual trust you can use the hashtag #CuraperChiCura on social media, sharing positive experiences with healthcare personnel; finally, we intend to give continuity and attention to this important and delicate theme by proposing further communication initiatives and moments of reflection in schools and local communities.