New resources are now available from the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association and the Joint Commission to help health care organizations address the growing risk of violence at their facilities and ensure safe environments for staff, patients and visitors. Additionally, the Massachusetts House of Representatives recently advanced legislation to protect the health care workforce. 

Guidelines from the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association 

The Guidelines for Healthcare Safety and Violence Prevention, released by MHA in October, update and replace previous guidance from 2019. The latest guidelines highlight six new or substantially revised areas of focus: 

• Health equity
• Attention across additional care settings, such as emergency departments, inpatient units, outpatient clinics, mobile health services and home health
• Strategies and resources to address caring for special populations, including patients with dementia, those on the autism spectrum and more
• Workplace Violence Prevention Standards from the Joint Commission
• Principles of trauma-informed care
• Support for victims and a focus on workforce wellbeing 

The guidelines are designed to provide a comprehensive framework by including detailed information on training and education, data collection and reporting, clinical operations, and security and safety procedures.  

National Performance Goals from the Joint Commission 

The Joint Commission also provides updated guidance to ensure safety and prevent workplace violence. Effective in January 2026, it is launching a new program of National Performance Goals for hospitals and critical access hospitals.  The goals identify 14 “critical issues” for special attention, including workplace violence and safety culture.  

The new performance goals incorporate and replace the Joint Commission’s National Patient Safety Goals and do not include new requirements for accreditation. The Joint Commission notes that standards for workplace violence prevention, which were added to accreditation requirements in 2022, “work synergistically with the other culture of safety standards,” to improve safety for patients and the workforce. 

The Massachusetts House passes a bill to prevent workplace violence in health care 

And, in a sign of increased support from legislators, the Massachusetts House of Representatives unanimously passed An Act Requiring Health Care Employers to Develop and Implement Programs to Prevent Workplace Violence in November. Sponsored by MHA, the Massachusetts Nurses Association and 1199SEIU Massachusetts, the legislation represents a new level of cooperation among those groups, who have supported similar but separate legislation in the past. The bill now goes to the Massachusetts Senate for consideration.