Overview
- Vivantes disclosed Tuesday that its staff filed roughly ten reports of aggression per day over the past year, marking a sharp rise from earlier years.
- The company says about three quarters of incidents are physical assaults and that roughly one incident involving a weapon such as a knife or pistol occurs about once a week.
- Vivantes reports that roughly two thirds of recorded incidents happen in psychiatric units, where acute mental‑health crises often trigger attacks, while emergency departments see fights tied to waiting times and disputes over treatment order.
- In response Vivantes has placed 24/7 guards in all emergency departments, equipped staff with alarm buttons that link directly to police, and says it is covering the security costs from its own budget.
- The disclosures have sparked a Berlin respect campaign and added pressure on hospitals nationwide by raising concerns about worker safety, rising security costs, and the strain on psychiatric and emergency services.