Bill Schueler, MSN, RN, CEN, CPPS, WVTS, FAEN

The healthcare landscape is changing. As of 2022, hospital violence prevention programs are now required for accredited hospitals throughout the US. Increased public policy attention to violence in the healthcare sector will lead to mandatory violence prevention programs nation-wide within a few years. Bill is uniquely qualified to assist healthcare teams in achieving the next level of safety. 

Bill has a passion for safety. Through his 28 years of experience in EMS, emergency nursing, violence prevention, and patient safety, he understands the delicate balance between caregiver and patient safety.  You can't have one or the other; you must have both. Having been on the receiving end of violence many times while at the bedside, he knows that caregiver safety is the foundation of safe patient care.

In addition to being one of the first nurses in the nation to achieve certification as a Workplace Violence and Threat Specialist (WVTS), Bill has taught violence prevention to thousands of caregivers. Bill has been sought after as an expert and consultant in violence prevention and the use of self-defense in the healthcare setting. He helps organizations meet and exceed industry violence prevention standards. His Black Belt Nurse Podcast explores the complexity of violence in healthcare through thought-provoking discussion.

Bill has been an innovator and thought leader for violence prevention and has contributed in many task forces and projects at the hospital, system, and enterprise levels:

• Created a Violence Prevention Program Manager position,

• Overhauled violence prevention policy to be in compliance with state law, regulations and comprehensiveness,

• Designed a Risk for Violence communication and flagging process, including an audit and appeal process

• Created behavioral expectation signage,

• Service on leadership and steering committees,

• Collated multiple sources of data and made them visible to all leader and caregivers,

• Integrated violence risk assessment tools and risk for violence communication,

• Held sensing sessions with front-line caregivers to gain their perspective,

• Developed multi-pronged approach to the identification and investigation of sexual abuse/assault events to comply with and exceed accreditation requirements from the Joint Commission,

• Created a Compassionate Accountability after Violent Encounters Decision Guide to enhance fair accountability of caregivers after violence events.

Bill’s steadfast contributions and teamwork has contributed to the following results:

• 39% decrease in workers’ compensation claims due to workplace violence

• > 50% decrease in lost work days since 2020

• ~ 50% decrease in total cost of workers’ compensation claims since 2020

• 45% decrease in workplace violence injury rate (per 1,000 FTE) in 2023-2024

• 33% increase in workplace violence reporting since 2021

• 95% completion of violence reports by managers within 20 days

• 160% increase in active Risk for Violence communication flags with 81% decrease in error rate (2023-2024)

Bill has extensive public policy experience and has been very active with his professional organization, serving on national committees for the past several years. He's advocated for clinical care improvements, nurse and patient safety issues, and violence prevention with our national and state governments. He continues to support and advise his state’s organization by chairing the Government Affairs Committee and serving as a delegate to the annual general assembly. 

Through his substantial and enduring violence prevention contributions to the profession of emergency nursing, Bill was inducted as a fellow into the Academy of Emergency Nursing in 2019.

Bill had the honor of writing a chapter on self-care in Emergency Nursing: The Profession, the Practice, the Pathway, published by Sigma Theta Tau International. His chapter highlights the many stresses the emergency nurse may encounter and the critical importance of self-care. He’s authored chapters on workplace violence in Sheehy’s Emergency Nursing Principles and Practice, 7th edition and Sheehy’s Manual of Emergency Care, 8th edition as well as co-authored a chapter in Strauss & Mayer’s Emergency Department Management, 2nd edition. Bill has another chapter in the works for a prestigious emergency text in 2025!

His extensive patient safety specialist and violence prevention experiences give him a unique insight into the risks that face patients and caregivers. Having facilitated over 100 root cause analyses and investigated hundreds of safety events, he has helped teams identify system and process flaws and create safer care environments.