Policies & Procedures for Reporting Workplace Violence

When an incident of violence occurs at the medical center, ambulatory care clinic, or offsite location, staff should: 

1. Seek safety and immediately notify UCSF PD by calling 911 
2. Immediately notify your supervisor or manager about the situation
3. Receive medical care at your closest Emergency Department or at Occupational Health Services
4. File an incident report via RL Datix.

All incidents of workplace violence that occured within the medical center must be reported via RL Datix, UCSF Health's Incident Reporting System.  A report filed in RL Datix however is not a police report.  Employees must contact UCPD to file a police report or to request emergency assistance.  UCSF will take all actions to assist the employee in reporting any incident of workplace violence.  UCSF will not take any punitive or retaliatory action against an employee seeking assistance from local emergency services or law enforcement when a violent incident occurs.  All incident reports submitted in RL Datix are automatically forwarded to the appropriate managers and offices for follow up.

What to do in an emergency

• Get yourself and others to safety as quickly as possible
• Call 911 for emergency assistance
• If you cannot stay on the line, keep it open as long as possible until the police arrive
• Provide police as much detail as possible; the more information the police receive, the better they are able to respond

UCSF staff, faculty, and students functioning as staff who either witness or are directly involved/affected by an incident of workplace violence while on campus, should report the incident to: 

• Campus Workplace Violence Prevention team - [email protected]
• UCSF Police Department - Report a Crime to UCSF PD  
• Risk and Safety Solutions (RSS) - Report WPV on Campus (Login and UCSF VPN are required for access.) 

For technical assistance with reporting an incident of workplace violence through the RSS portal: Reporting an Incident of Workplace Violence on Campus

For UCSF campus employees who are involved in an incident of workplace violence while in the medical center, please refer to the instructions under "Reporting Incidents of Workplace Violence within the Medical Center" above. 

UCSF Health instituted policies that address various types of behavior or events.  Click on the policy title listed below to view the full document. 

• Management of Behavior That Disrupts the Environment of Care
• Restraints
• Security Management
• Workplace Violence Prevention Policy
• Environment of Care Policies

Every employee is encouraged to become familiar with these documents that govern everyone who works at, or does business with, UCSF Health. 

Department/Unit Specific Workplace Violence Prevention Plans are required for all Medical Center departments and in-patient units that are designated High-Risk Areas and recommended for all other departments and in-patient units. These plans should be considered part of every employee’s basic health and safety responsibilities.  They contain guidelines that can be used to assist in the prevention and response to workplace violence incidents. 

Department managers and staff are responsible for the review and update of their unit’s Workplace Violence Prevention Plan on an annual basis. This plan should be reviewed with each new staff member, and at least annually with all staff. Keep this plan in your Environment of Care (EOC) manual. This plan will be checked during each safety round and shall be updated/reviewed at least annually.

To access your unit's Workplace Violence Prevention Plan, please use the following link: Risk and Safety Solutions (RSS) Procedures  

If you require any assistance in completing your plan and/or unit risk assessment, please contact the Workplace Violence Prevention Program (WPVP) Administrator at [email protected].