Home care provider issues panic buttons after sharp rise in violence toward workers
Dutch home care provider Tzorg is issuing panic buttons to its employees after a sharp rise in aggressive incidents, including encounters with a drug-impaired client foaming at the mouth and another client who had a gun. The organization says the measure is needed as threats and intimidation against home care workers continue to increase.
Tzorg operates in 310 municipalities across the Netherlands. In 2022, the organization recorded 185 reports of aggression against staff. That figure rose to nearly 300 last year, according to director René Akkermans, who spoke to the newspaper AD.
When a home care worker presses the panic button, colleagues can immediately listen in remotely. If the button is held down for a longer period, the system automatically calls the emergency number 112.
Akkermans cited cases involving “a client with foam on the mouth due to narcotics, a lot of verbal aggression, and a client with a gun.” He said employees regularly feel unsafe during home visits. Some clients lock the door once a home care worker is inside. Others confront staff with what he described as “rude, completely confused, angry or addicted” behavior in their homes.
The health care workers’ union NU’91 has also expressed concern about the safety of home care staff. “This group is especially vulnerable, because they are one-on-one with a client,” union spokesperson Michel van Erp told AD.
Tzorg said the panic buttons are part of a broader set of safety measures already in place. Employees are trained to deal with difficult clients, and the organization has sent letters to clients outlining rules for acceptable behavior.
Additional protections were included last year in the new collective labor agreement for home care and nursing homes. Under the agreement, employees no longer have to display their last names on ID badges and are not required to make home visits alone if they feel unsafe.
