Certified Instructor Spotlight: Advocating for the Safety of Health Care Workers

When emergency services nurse Joseph Lohr became a CPI Certified Instructor (CI) at University of Kentucky HealthCare in September 2022, he knew he’d be responsible for ensuring his entire team felt safe on a daily basis.

Less than two years into his role as a CI, Lohr distributed his 250th Blue Card^®—a milestone demonstrating his belief in CPI training to provide his team with the skills to safely recognize and prevent escalating situations.

Lohr’s devotion to his nursing career is evident, and he has continuously shown a strong sense of compassion for fellow health care workers.

Recognizing the Demand for a Safer Workplace

Studies have shown that, on average, emergency nurses and other ER workers experience a violent event once every two months.¹ In a high-risk environment where emotions and tensions run high, this alarming figure merely underscores why health care professionals deserve better support.

Before his introduction to CPI, Lohr assumed it was “normal” for nurses to feel such extreme levels of stress—and that violence and harassment were to be expected by those who have decidedly entered the health care world. However, he quickly learned that should not be the case. With proper de-escalation training, hospital staff, patients, families and visitors can communicate calmly and effectively with one another.

When training is implemented for all staff, it also results in reduced staff turnover, increased confidence in the ability to reduce or prevent violent incidents, and fewer cases of burnout, anxiety and depression.

“It was refreshing to hear someone tell me that workplace violence is not OK and that we're here to help mitigate that. Early on in my emergency department nursing career, it almost felt like it was just a part of the job.”

Focusing on Positive Outcomes

After every training Lohr has either instructed or partaken in, he feels like he has gained new skills he can apply to his job every day. “When I became a CI in 2022, that was something I reflected on. I walked away with the feeling that I was heard and understood, and there are learnings I can apply to my own life.”

For Lohr, one of the most rewarding aspects of working in the emergency department is advocating for patients and providing them with the best possible care while they are in the ER. “I'm here to try and make their day just a little bit better or make their lives a little bit easier.”

Lohr contributes this positive mindset to the skills he has learned through CPI training, including Rational Detachment, the ability to make decisions and assess situations based on logic, reason and evidence rather than emotions or personal biases.

“I tell [my team and students] that if you take the extra minute to sit down and have a conversation with your patients, you've changed the entire dynamic of your relationship,” Lohr said. “You're going to build that trust and, therefore, potentially avoid escalation. And if you do that with every single patient, you'll find that you're reducing risk without even realizing it.”

Nurturing New and Future Health Care Professionals

When we asked Lohr if he had any words of wisdom to share with the next generation of health care workers, his answer spoke volumes:

“At the end of the day, you’re there for the patients. For me, it has always been about sending my patients out the door in better health than when they came to me.” He continued, “Implementing CPI training allows me to send my team home in the same or better condition than when they got to work—not just physically, but mentally and emotionally.”

“CPI helped me remember why I went into health care. Yes, we take care of patients, but you also have to take care of you.”

Our Certified Instructors are incredible people who help their organizations’ staff acquire crucial de-escalation skills to keep themselves and their patients safe. With CIs like Joseph Lohr, the CPI mission can be accomplished.

¹ https://www.nursingworld.org/news/news-releases/2024/ana-ena--acep-sound-the-alarm-on-violence-against-nurses/