This June, I’ll celebrate 39 years as a nurse. And if you count the three years in nursing school (and trust me, they counted), that’s 42 years in healthcare.
While it’s been more than a few years since I last clocked into a hospital, I haven’t forgotten what it feels like to be in the thick of it—short-staffed, overworked, and pushing through for the people who need you. I still understand what nurses and other healthcare workers face every single day.
There are plenty of persistent problems in healthcare—chronic under-staffing, missing supplies, cranky coworkers (bless their hearts). But the issue that urgently demands our attention right now is workplace violence.
This newsletter has always aimed to educate and, when possible, give you something to smile about. This month, though, the topic is no laughing matter. We’re talking about nurses being assaulted, spit on, cursed at, threatened—and worse—while simply doing their jobs to care for their patients.
Yes, the national mood has grown darker since the COVID pandemic. People are more anxious, more frustrated, and more prone to lashing out. We see it everywhere—from gas stations to grocery stores to airline gates. But let’s be crystal clear: this behavior has no place in healthcare.
I hope you’ll take a moment to read the column on the right. Learn more about the reality nurses are facing. And if you haven’t already, please consider supporting our petition. Because protecting nurses isn’t just a healthcare issue—it’s a human one.
— Betty Long, RN, MHA, President/CEO, Guardian Nurses Health Advocates
Nurses Under Fire: The Epidemic of Violence Against Nurses
I can guarantee that no nursing student–ever—has been trained to duck flying bedpans or comfort a coworker who’s been spit on and verbally abused. Yet on countless shifts, all across the U.S., nurses watch colleagues take insults and threats as if they were just part of the job. They witness unspeakable acts like seeing their friend’s hair pulled or a patient kick another nurse in the chest. Though it might be shrugged off in the break room, the truth is far darker. Nurses and other caregivers are living a hidden crisis every day — and it’s quietly breaking our hearts and affecting our health.
The Numbers Tell the Story
- According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, healthcare and social service workers experience workplace violence at FIVE TIMES the rate of other industries. Nurses are more likely to be assaulted on the job than police officers or prison guards.
- 46% of nurses say that violence increased on their unit in just one year.
- Nurses experience multiple types of workplace violence on a daily basis, ranging from physical abuse to verbal threats.
These aren’t just numbers. They represent bruises, broken spirits, and empty beds. Patients are impacted, too, when nurses walk away or shrink with fear. These effects are far reaching. If a worried parent sees us visibly shaken or hears us whispering about safety, their trust dissolves. No patient wants to see their nurse looking over their shoulder instead of at their IV pump.
Violence Is Never “Part of the Job”
Consider Leela Lal, a nurse in Florida. In February 2025 she was nearly beaten to death by a patient during her shift. Multiple bones in her face were broken and she had brain bleeding. “I couldn’t recognize her,” her daughter cried. Leela survived, but the trauma was unthinkable. This horror isn’t isolated. One NIH-backed analysis bluntly calls violence against nurses “a pandemic.” One friend, still working in acute care told me, ”We face shoving, shouting matches and more — and too often we’re told it’s just collateral damage of caring.”
For years nurses have been told to toughen up, to chalk this up as “just nursing.” Not anymore. Experts warn that thinking violence is OK on the job is dangerous. A recent review notes that “violence in the workplace has become so common that it is now considered… part of the job” — and that mindset must end. Hospital leaders at the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) now insist the opposite: “Being subjected to violence in the workplace is never part of the job.”
Nurses have absorbed a lot in silence, but each insult or shove goes straight to the heart. Nurses describe being screamed at, grabbed or threatened, and then being told to move on. We are healers, not punching bags, and each attack chips away at our ability to provide compassion and care. We didn’t sign up for this — and it’s time someone said so.
The High Cost for Patients and Staff
Unchecked violence drives good nurses away. The National Nurses United (NNU) organization, with more than 225,000 members nationwide, is the largest union and professional association of registered nurses in U.S. history. NNU found 6 in 10 RNs have changed jobs or considered quitting because of workplace violence. That means fewer hands for patient care, longer waits, and more exhaustion for nurses who stay. Every moment a nurse spends defusing a threat is a moment a patient might wait. Studies confirm that—violence directed at staff “negatively affects patient care.” When nurses aren’t safe and supported, everyone loses.
Time to Act
Enough is enough. I’m calling on all of us — nurses, patients, families, and friends — to take a stand. I’ve launched a petition on Change.org (title is Protect Our Nurses) to demand stronger protections for caregivers. Gratefully, as of May 6th, there is even momentum in Congress: the bipartisan and bicameral Save Healthcare Workers Act would make attacking health workers a federal crime. But laws won’t change themselves — we have to make some noise.
- Sign & Share: If you have not signed already, add your name to our Change.org petition and share it widely. Every signature shows we are serious. (And if you HAVE signed, THANK YOU!)
- Speak Up: Share your story or concerns on social media and with legislators, particularly now that there are two bills being considered by each Chamber of Congress. Personal voices spark change faster than statistics.
Email the four elected officials who introduced the 2025 Save Healthcare Workers Act. Let them know you support the bills and thank them for their leadership on this issue.
- Maine Senator Angus King.
- Mississippi Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith
- Iowa Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks
- Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean
- Stand Together: Support a colleague who’s been harassed or hurt. Let them know their community has their back.
- Demand Safety: Urge hospitals and healthcare facilities to adopt zero-tolerance policies, better training, and secure staffing levels.
- Talk About It: Spread the word with friends and family. Silence benefits no one.
Nurses show up every day to care for families in crisis. The least we deserve is to do our jobs without fear. Please, sign the petition and help light a fire under this issue — for our safety, our patients, and the future of health care. Let’s fix this now.