The Program
The S.A.F.E. Approach™ is an exciting training program designed specifically for those in the healthcare field where the effective use of verbal and non-verbal communication skills can reduce the risk of negative or violent encounters with patients, visitors and co-workers.
The S.A.F.E. Approach offers nursing contact hours for Levels I, II, & III. This continuing nursing education activity was approved by the Midwest Multistate Division, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
At the heart of The S.A.F.E. Approach is the concept of recognizing potentially hazardous situations and mitigating their impact, all while treating individuals with dignity and respect – a key component. We know that compassion, empathy and a comprehensive understanding of human behavior can resolve or even prevent most conflicts. It\’s only on rare occasion that an individual must resort to some form of defensive posture or response, but it’s this key component of our training that separates The S.A.F.E. Approach from many others: our simple, effective and easy to remember methods for enhancing personal safety.
Why S.A.F.E?
There’s no question that those in the healthcare industry are experiencing an ever increasing responsibility to care for and protect their staff, patients and visitors. The Occupational Safety and Health Act mandates that, in addition to compliance with hazard-specific standards, all employers have a general duty to provide their employees with a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm. Not only must you concern yourself with quality medical care, but you also have a duty to protect these individuals from physical harm.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 60 percent of all non-fatal injuries from occupational assaults and violent acts occur on health care and social service workers. Further, these acts occur most often in hospitals, nursing and personal care facilities, and residential care services.
Quite frankly, there are a number of considerations you face in bringing a complete workplace violence reduction program to your healthcare facility. From civil and criminal law to satisfying medical surveyors, each of these requirements has costs associated with them, both in staff training and curriculum expense. As the industry strives to minimize expenses and better manage assets, administrators are looking for programs that are cost-effective and yet provide excellent training and resources to assist in protecting all who enter their facilities.
This is why The S.A.F.E. Approach method was developed; to provide administrators, security directors and others peace of mind in knowing that their staff – at all levels – have been trained in effective methods of resolving conflict. As you familiarize yourself with our program, you will see that we have extensive experience in conflict resolution.
The word Safe in The S.A.F.E. Approach tends to speak for itself; however, to further define our program, we use the acronym S.A.F.E. as follows:
S – Safety
The S.A.F.E. Approach™ method has the safety or everyone in mind. Those who participate in our training learn techniques that will keep them safe and others as well.
A – Attitude
It’s been said that, “We can’t control others actions; we can only control our own!” While this may be true in many encounters, we believe that our own attitude plays an important role in any encounter and has a strong influence on the attitude of others.
F – Focus
In order to be effective, we must maintain focus on the techniques taught. As we all are aware, habits form when we repeat routines of behavior. Done enough, these habits become subconscious activities.
E – Empathy
Empathy has been defined as “the capacity to recognize, and to some extent, share feelings that are being experienced by another.” It is an important component of The S.A.F.E. Approach™ method.