Social Minister Drese calls for more protection against violence in care!

Social Minister Drese calls for more protection against violence in care!

This week's State Prevention Day in Neubrandenburg sent an important signal against violence in care. Stefanie Drese, the Social Minister of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, calls for a more sensitive approach to the issue and emphasizes that violence in care should no longer be a taboo topic. In her remarks, she emphasizes that violence does not only occur in physical form, but also becomes visible through the intentional ignoring of wishes or derogatory statements. “There is something going on and we have to counteract it at an early stage,” says Drese, who believes the development of preventive measures is essential. The minister also welcomes the collection and awards of best practice examples that serve as role models. A step in the right direction, as bibliomed-pflege.de reports.

The event in Neubrandenburg not only drew attention to the important issue, but also awarded three remarkable projects with the State Prevention Prize. The award winners are the Pomeranian Diakonieverein, whose project “Rethinking Violence Protection” aims to raise awareness and prevent violence, as well as the Clinic and Polyclinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the Rostock University Medical Center, which offers de-escalation training and psychological emergency help. The State Department of Dementia also won a prize with a social space-related approach to promoting community. Each of the prize winners was able to look forward to a trophy and prize money of 1,000 euros.

Background to violence prevention

Violence in care, be it in outpatient or inpatient settings, is an issue that is often underestimated by the general public. It can come from people in need of care against nursing staff and relatives, or vice versa. It is therefore essential to develop and implement community measures that address violence against older people in the long-term care sector. In this context, the Federal Ministry of Health has launched a project that is based on the results of the European project MILCEA and aims to establish a systematic prevention approach (bundesgesundheitsministerium.de).

Fortunately, there are also various extensive study insights on this topic. Systematic reviews show that violence among nursing staff is common, and recommendations for dealing with challenging behavior in dementia care are just as important as the development of prevention strategies (zqp.de). A particularly worrying aspect is that reports indicate that violence is often perpetrated both against and by those in care, adding to the complexity of the situation.

The need to raise awareness of violence in nursing is more important than ever. The realization that both caring relatives and seniors themselves can be affected shows that there is an urgent need for action. A healthy culture of cooperation that promotes understanding and respect is the goal that must be achieved.

The road to preventing violence in nursing remains a long one, but recent initiatives give legitimate cause for hope. In the coming months it will be crucial to continue to pursue the projects presented and to implement their findings across the board. This is the only way to bring about sustainable change and improve the nursing conditions for everyone involved.