According to the 2019-20 BHS Annual Report tabled in state parliament last week there were 1556 incidents of violence which was slightly fewer than the previous year.

But the rate of 52.21 incidents per 100 full time equivalent employees was triple that of both Barwon Health in Geelong (17.1 per 100 FTE) and Bendigo Health (17.55).

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And one in 12 violent incidents at BHS facilities resulted in a staff member being injured, becoming ill or developing a condition.

"The prevalence and severity of occupational violence that our staff are exposed to is growing. It is extremely disappointing that some of our community disrespect healthcare workers in such a way that can cause both physical and psychological harm to healthcare workers," a hospital spokesperson said. "Violence toward healthcare staff is never acceptable, and should not be tolerated in any form."

Violence at Barwon Health dropped dramatically over the same time, in part because of the introduction of body cameras worn by security staff and activated during incidents of violence and aggression which have proven to help deter aggressive behaviours.

BHS said they had recently revised their occupational violence and aggression protocols in part response to the high rate of incidents, to put a renewed focus on identification, prevention and early intervention to stop escalation of agitated patients.

"We've focused on identifying situations that give rise to violence and are working to put plans in place before a patient arrives (where possible), or implementing a plan if there is an episode. These plans may include additional staffing requirements, removing triggers where possible, or relocating the patient to a different ward or area."

Occupational violence is defined as any incident where an employee is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances arising out of, or in the course of their employment.

An incident is defined as an event or circumstance that could have resulted in, or did result in, harm to an employee.

BHS' rate of occupational hazards and incidents was far higher than that of Barwon Health and Bendigo Health.

The annual report revealed 80.16 hazards and incidents per 100 full time equivalent employees in Ballarat, which is slightly down from the previous financial year, compared to 49.48 at Barwon Health and 43.23 in Bendigo.

But the average cost of WorkCover claims resulting from occupational hazards and incidents, including aggression and violence, has skyrocketed.

The average cost per WorkCover claim in 2019-20 was $65,778 when it was $6221 just two years previously in 2017-18.

"The increase in average cost per claim can largely be attributed to an increase in costs associated with musculoskeletal injuries," a BHS spokesperson said.

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"The work that our staff undertake is physically demanding, and prevention of these injuries is one of our areas of focus through our safe patient handling training program. It's important to note that the average cost per claim is not solely based on injuries that occurred within this reporting period, but also includes costs associated with treatments delivered on injuries that had been reported previously."

At Barwon Health the average cost per WorkCover claim was $51,029 and $22,481 in Bendigo.

Ballarat Health Services is also participating in a WorkSafe pilot program for frontline workers who are experiencing stress (including as a result of occupational violence and aggression) to access ongoing support without a formal WorkSafe claim.

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