bodily harm, etc..

Specialties Occupational

Published

A few years ago, I applied for a job as an Occupational RN in a work-comp clinic. One of the nurses who had worked there for a few years had joked about how many bomb threats and threatening phone calls they get. I'm just curious to see if this is pretty common amongst this type of work.

Sharon

215 Posts

Chubby,

I talked to a few OHN's at different locations who are not on the net. All of us have worked in OH in both government and corporate settings. No one has received a bomb threat in a corporate setting. Some, including myself, have been impacted at government locations when an entire agency has received a threat. No one has experienced a bomb threat directed strictly to the Occupational Health Unit.

Threats directed to a specific nurse are a different matter. In both corporate and government settings nurses have received or been made aware of threats. They appear to be tied into fitness for duty cases. Not just behavioral cases, but also cases that have only physical limitations involved. Those that work with blue collar and union employees appear to have more threats directed to them.

There is also an evolution occurring in the threats we are seeing. No longer are they simple threats of violence and death. Some are becoming quite ingenious. Like "If I don't like your decision, what you say, etc. I will complain to both the Nursing and Medical Board or even the DA. Then you will have to pay to defend yourself." I have had both threats and I can't decide which is worse.

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