Nurses decry quiet withdrawal of charges stemming from violence at Southlake Regional Health Centre

Health-care workers' safety continues to be at great risk

NEWMARKET, ON, March 28, 2022 /CNW/ - With serious workplace violence incidents continuing to plague Southlake Regional Health Centre, Ontario Nurses' Association (ONA) President Cathryn Hoy, RN says that she is incensed that several of the latest round of workplace violence charges against Southlake are being quietly withdrawn by the Crown

"The charges that were brought against Southlake and CEO Arden Krystal personally, resulted from a three separate incidents of workplace violence that happened in October and December of 2020, including an incident involving a nurse and ONA member, who was injured while caring for a patient with a known history of violent behaviours," notes Hoy. "A thorough investigation led the Ministry to charge the workplace and, in a first, the CEO herself, for failing to protect health-care workers. Yet, all but two of the charges have been withdrawn with no explanation as to why."

The charge laid against Ms. Krystal was a significant move for the Ministry because charging the head of an organization is a very rare and serious occurrence. "We believed that the charge against the CEO was a crucial step towards holding employers accountable for the health and safety of their workers. It is frustrating that the charge has now been withdrawn," says Hoy.

Two charges, including a charge regarding the lack of reliable personal workplace violence alarms for staff members, remain against Southlake. There have been incidents in which staff have tried to activate their personal alarms due to workplace violence only to have them not function, putting them directly in harm's way. "A faulty alarm button stands between a worker and the ability to summon help in a critical situation. I sincerely hope that these charges remain," explains Hoy.

Workplace violence continues to be rampant in health care. Nurses and health-care workers continue to regularly experience physical, verbal, and sexual violence, which takes a punishing toll on their mental and physical well-being.

"The pandemic has exacerbated already dire workplace conditions. Workplace violence has always been underreported, and with charges like these being dropped, this does not treat violence against nurses with the seriousness it deserves and may further deter workers reporting violence," says Hoy.

ONA is the union representing more than 68,000 nurses and health-care professionals, as well as 18,000 nursing student affiliates, providing care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health, the community, industry and clinics.

SOURCE Ontario Nurses' Association

Sheree Bond, [email protected], 416-986-8240; Katherine Russo, [email protected], 647-539-1925