AHA Offers #HAVhope Violence Awareness Toolkit

Today marks the fifth-annual #HAVhope Friday, a national day of awareness sponsored by the American Hospital Association (AHA) Hospitals Against Violence initiative. In an American Hospital Association (AHA) blog, AHA board member and AONL Past President Mary Beth Kingston, chief nursing officer at Advocate Aurora Health, based in Milwaukee and Downers Grove, Ill, discusses the approach her organization uses to combat violence. “Each hospital site has a designated team – an approach that engages the front line, as well as site experts, to identify trends, priority areas and solutions,” she notes, adding that the health system’s community programs and partnerships address human trafficking and physical and sexual assault. The #HAVhope Friday digital toolkit on the AHA website has social media posts and graphics to help spread the word, along with links to case studies, webinars and podcasts on the topic. The event provides nurse leaders and others with an opportunity to share how they are using community partnerships, innovations and creative thinking to foster peace and make a safer environment for staff and patients. (AHA News article, 5/27/21)