Situation
Community Health System is a not-for-profit health care system and the largest private employer in Central California, with over 11,000 team members across its hospitals and care settings. Like many health care organizations, Community operates in fast-paced environments where patient needs are increasingly complex, and the risk of violent incidents is growing.
Community leadership recognized the need for a consistent, preventative approach to crisis prevention and de-escalation—one that prioritized team member safety while reinforcing compassionate, patient-centered care.
Solution
In 2022, Community partnered with CPI to implement Nonviolent Crisis Intervention® and Prevention First™ Trainings as part of an organization-wide strategy.
Classes were initially offered once a week in small sizes to ensure quality training, using scenarios rooted in real experiences from relevant units within Community facilities. This was soon expanded to twice a week with larger class sizes to better support high-risk care environments.
Training was prioritized based on risk and need:
- Prevention First™ became a mandatory annual education for all team members
- Nonviolent Crisis Intervention® was embedded into onboarding for higher-risk departments
- Emergency Departments and Medical-Surgical units, with higher rates of violent incidents, became key areas of focus
Results
CPI training provided Community team members with:
- Practical skills to confidently de-escalate challenging interactions
- A trauma-informed, person-centered approach to care
- Strategies to improve communication between caregivers, patients, and team members
By embedding CPI training into onboarding and ongoing development for high-risk teams, Community continues to cultivate a sustainable culture of crisis de-escalation and prevention that supports safer interactions, team member well-being, and positive patient outcomes.
Customer Story
Nonviolent crisis intervention trainings help reduce injury-related incidents and improve well-being for the entire team.
Watch the video below to hear the full story of how Matt Butler, Workplace Violence Prevention Training Specialist, worked with CPI to strengthen safety and well-being at Community.
“CPI training has definitely had a positive impact on our emergency team.”
Shari Warner, BSN, CEN
Manager, Emergency Services at Clovis Community Medical Center
Read more about how CPI training has positively impacted Community Health System by downloading our one-pager.