Active Shooter in the Workplace: A Brief Guide for Occupational Health Nurses

Active Shooter in the Workplace

A snapshot look at the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) active shooter incidents between 2000 and 2018 reveals there were 277 occurrences in various settings across the United States. The total number of casualties (including killed and wounded) during this timeframe was 2,430, and the annual incidents have continued to rise with each passing year. A large proportion (43.7%) of the active shooter incidents took place in the workplace or “commerce”/business locations. Educational and health care settings account for an additional 24.9%, indicating that more than half took place in locations nurses frequent (FBI, 2021a). Professionals across the nation agree that nurses are in a prime position to facilitate disaster prevention, mitigation, planning, response, and recovery in the organizations with which they are associated (Fil et al., 2021). Accordingly, occupational health nurses (OHNs) are strategically situated to promote active shooter awareness and training in their workplace. In collaboration with the administrative team, OHNs can assist in planning education, active drills, and table-top exercises which include all employees in the facility. Disaster drills are well-known to increase muscle memory through repetitive actions that increase the likelihood of a predictable, positive response to a disaster or emergency, and reduce the incidence of “freezing” (Cherry, 2019). Freezing (immobility) or failure to act may cause delays in split-second decisions and evacuations. Advanced planning of critical actions in response to a workplace threat will improve overall employee safety as well as individual safety.

One of the original active shooter resources is the FBI’s “Run. Hide. Fight.” Program, which includes videos and guidance that can be used to initiate planning and training exercises. Active shooter situations are unpredictable and evolve rapidly. This program includes step-by-step actions that can promote survival (FBI, 2021b). As an example, the FBI training video can be viewed, reviewed, and practiced in a group setting with a postactivity debrief to reinforce the recommendations. As a team, work colleagues collaboratively identify specific areas in the environment that would be used to enhance or secure employee safety. In addition, incorporation of “Stop the Bleed ®” (STB) training and practice discussed by Jones et al. (2020), will also enhance effective workplace response to an active shooter event and increase overall survival rates. OHNs can become certified as STB instructors. For more information, visit https://www.stopthebleed.org/ and click “Get Trained”/“Instructors.” Furthermore, most university campus sites now have active shooter training programs and practice active shooter drills on an annual basis. A case in point is Weber State University’s active shooter course which incorporates the “Shots Fired” training program. The “Shots Fired” program and other comparable training programs require site licensing. They share similarities with the FBI’s program and also include the five stages of an active shooter (developing signs in an individual), which heightens awareness and fosters prevention of an actual event. University campus police can be an excellent resource for OHNs as a means of local, interdisciplinary collaboration.

Prior to April 20, 1999, when the Columbine High School shootings occurred, most Americans assumed that places such as movie theaters, schools, and workplaces were safe. Since then, there have been a multitude of mass shootings and several changes in emergency response to such events. Accordingly, OHNs and their colleagues must prepare for the unimaginable. In the words of a parent of a student at Columbine High, “The definition of normal changed on that day” (Milburn, 2020).