In a Jan. 20 letter to CMS, 10 national healthcare organizations asked the federal agency to issue clear guidance on emergency department signage that discourages violence against healthcare workers.
Hospital surveyors have questioned and cited workplace violence signs as potential violations of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, claiming the signs could dissuade patients from continuing care, the letter said.
Across the U.S., violence and incivility directed at healthcare workers is rising in hospitals and EDs, prompting health systems to create chief security officer roles and beef up workplace safety measures, including metal detectors and initiatives to encourage reporting.
The letter to CMS cited hospitals’ workplace violence prevention programs and said “the most basic element of prevention is often out of reach — that is, signage that sets expectations for respectful behavior and emphasizes that violence toward staff, patients or visitors is unacceptable and could have consequences.”
“In prior correspondence with several of our organizations, CMS staff have noted that while CMS and the HHS Office of Inspector General discourage ED signage that could deter individuals from remaining for medical screening examinations and stabilizing treatment, hospitals may post additional signs if they can demonstrate that they would not be such a deterrent,” the letter said.
CMS has declined to provide clarification to healthcare organizations on what could deter patients and thus violate EMTALA, according to the letter.
The letter was penned by America’s Essential Hospitals, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Group Association, the American Nurses Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, the Children’s Hospital Association, the Emergency Nurses Association and the National Rural Health Association.
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