Health Care Workforce Safety and Well-Being
Examples of resources to support health care workforce safety and well-being.
Health Care Workforce Safety and Well-Being Resources
"The nation’s health depends on the well-being of our health workforce", said U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. The frontline worker is the most important stakeholder in The Joint Commission’s mission to advance patient safety. This section is intended to enable health care leaders, managers and staff to easily find examples of tools, resources and strategies that they may use in their efforts to improve the well-being of staff. As stated by the National Steering Committee for Patient Safety in Safer Together: A National Action Plan to Advance Patient Safety (2020), “ensuring the safety and resiliency of the organization and the workforce is a necessary precondition to advancing patient safety; we need to work toward a unified, total systems-based perspective and approach to eliminate harm to both patients and the workforce.”
This page provides links to materials developed by The Joint Commission and key health care-related organizations such as the National Academy of Medicine, as well as the federal government, including The Office of the Surgeon General and CDC NIOSH. The content focuses on organization and system-level resources which are organized in the tabs below according to source. We hope you find the information useful and welcome your suggestions for improvement.
National Academy of Medicine Resource Compendium for Health Care Worker Well-Being
In 2017, the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) began an action collaborative on clinician well-being and resilience. In Jan 2022, NAM published a resource compendium to improve the well-being of the health care workforce.
In October of 2022, NAM released the National Plan, a call to action for all involved, which has been endorsed by more than 30 organizations.
Workplace Violence Prevention
Since 2008, The Joint Commission has produced a series of free safety alert newsletters on workplace violence prevention strategies. A workplace violence resources portal was launched in 2016 that provides links to materials from many organizations and examples of programs in the field. In 2022, new accreditation requirements for hospitals became effective. For more information click the button below.
Resources from U.S. Federal Government
The CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and several other agencies have developed resources focused on health care worker safety and well-being. In May of 2022, the U.S. Surgeon General’s advisory highlighted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health workers, who already faced crisis levels of burnout prior to the pandemic.
Resources From The Joint Commission
The Joint Commission has supported health care worker well-being through statements, newsletters, videos, letters of support and publications. For more information on these items, click on the button below.
Disclaimer
The Joint Commission’s placement of content on this website is not an endorsement of the source nor of any particular product or service, nor should it be construed as a statement that the source, or its products or services, are superior to those of other companies. Website users acknowledge The Joint Commission may not be the primary source of the content. By accessing and using website resources, website users agree to make no claim of any kind against The Joint Commission for any and all damages that result from use or implementation of any website content. Some included items (such as Joint Commission monographs) were developed several years ago. While much of the content remains relevant, users should be aware that the information has not been updated.
- Quick Safety Issue 50: Developing resiliency to combat nurse burnout
- Quick Safety Issue 54: Promoting psychosocial well-being of health care staff during crisis
- The Critical Workforce Element in Safe + Sound Workplaces
- Ambuzz Blog April 4, 2022
- Frontline Hospital Workers and the Worker Safety/Patient Safety Nexus
- Improving Patient and Worker Safety: Opportunities for Synergy, Collaboration and Innovation
- Compendium of Resources for Improving Clinician Well-Being
- Valid and Reliable Survey Instruments to Measure Burnout, Well-Being, and other Work-Related Dimensions
- Home page of the Clinician Well-Being Collaborative
- National Action Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being
- Taking Action Against Clinician Burnout: A Systems Approach to Professional Well-Being
- Health worker burnout: The U.S. Surgeon General's advisory on building a thriving health workforce
- NIOSH Total Worker Health® Program
- NIOSH Worker Well-Being Questionnaire (WellBQ)
- OSHA Healthcare News
- OSHA Healthcare
- Joint Commission Resources and OSHA Alliance
- OSHA Alliance Resources
- OSHA/TJC/JCR Alliance
Medicine
- American Medical Association
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
- American Association of Physician Leadership (AAPL)
- American College of Physicians
- American College of Surgeons
Nursing
Healthcare Administration
- American Hospital Association - Well-being
- American Hospital Association - Workforce
- American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM)
- CEO Coalition
Public Health
Pharmacy
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Patient Safety Topics
- COVID-19
- Emergency Management
- Health Care Workforce Safety and Well-Being
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Infection Prevention and Control
- Infection Prevention and Control
- Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections Toolkit and Monograph
- Ambulatory Health Care Infection Prevention and Control
- Antibiotic Stewardship
- Behavioral Health Care Infection Prevention and Control
- Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections
- Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections
- Compendium of Strategies to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections
- Critical Access Hospital Infection Prevention and Control
- Dental
- Disinfection and Sterilization
- General Infection Prevention and Control
- Guidelines
- Hand Hygiene
- High Reliability and Infection Prevention
- Home Care Infection Prevention and Control
- Hospital Infection Prevention and Control
- Infection Prevention and Control Hierarchy
- Infection Prevention and Control Safety Alerts
- Infectious Disease Outbreaks and Response
- Influenza and Other Related Diseases
- Laboratory Infection Prevention and Control
- Legionnaires' Disease
- Multidrug-Resistant Organisms
- Nursing Care Center Infection Prevention and Control
- Respiratory Protection
- Sepsis
- Surgical Site Infections
- Vaccination
- Report a Patient Safety Concern or Complaint
- Suicide Prevention
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Workplace Violence Prevention
- Workplace Violence Prevention
- Joint Commission Blog Posts
- Joint Commission Podcasts
- Joint Commission Presentations
- Joint Commission Research Resources
- Joint Commission Resources Newsletters
- Joint Commission Resources and OSHA Alliance
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
- American Hospital Association
- American Nurses Association
- American Psychiatric Association
- American Psychiatric Nurses Association
- American Society for Healthcare Risk Management
- Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety
- CDC/National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
- Crisis Prevention Institute
- Compendium of Resources
- Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
- ECRI Institute
- Emergency Nurses Association
- Federal Bureau of Investigation
- From the Field
- Government Accountability Office
- DHS/Healthcare and Public Health Sector Coordinating Council
- iAdvance Senior Care
- Implementing Strategies for Safer Healthcare Organizations Webinar
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement
- International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety
- Massachusetts Department of Mental Health
- Minnesota Department of Health
- National Safety Council
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration
- Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response
- Ontario Safety Association for Community and Healthcare
- Oregon Association of Hospitals & Health Systems
- Sentinel Event Alert and Quick Safety newsletters
- Standards Related Information
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- Washington State Department of Labor & Industries
- Willis Towers Watson
- Zero Harm