When patient or visitor aggression becomes physical, staff need a clear plan: get out of danger, get help and respond as a team. This occupational violence and aggression training (often called OVA training) builds exactly that, aligned with your OVA framework and emergency response procedures, and taught by practitioners who have worked on hospital security reviews and occupational violence programs.
What your organisation gains
- A clear first principle for staff: remove yourself from danger, de-escalate where safe and call for help.
- Confident, coordinated Code Grey responses with security staff.
- Risk assessments for high risk areas such as emergency departments, mental health units and aged care.
- Training that fits your OVA framework, with restraint and personal protection training available separately where needed.
Why train with Agilient
Taught by practitioners
Every Agilient consultant has at least 20 years of experience, typically as security managers within large organisations, and has dealt first hand with the issues the course covers.
Built for your organisation
Content, examples and scenarios are shaped around your sites, policies and incident history, not an off-the-shelf syllabus that dates quickly.
Active learning
Participants work through case studies and carry out the activities themselves, so the skills stick after the day.
Designed for you to own
Train-the-trainer options and a strategy for moving the course into your own online learning mean the capability stays in-house.
Why OVA training matters now
Violence against health care workers is rising. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported in July 2026 that hospitalisations of health care workers for assault rose from 49 in 2015-16 to 126 in 2024-25, and that assault is now the second leading cause of injury hospitalisation among health care workers. In a 2025 survey reported by the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association, 88 per cent of more than 1,300 members said they had experienced or witnessed violence and aggression at work.
Reviews of hospital security have put training at the centre of the response. The final report of the NSW Health review of hospital security led by the Hon. Peter Anderson AM, published by NSW Health in February 2021, recommended risk-based rostering of security staff, considering health and security assistants in emergency departments, and blended violence prevention training delivered as close as practicable to the workplace. The Victorian Department of Health framework for occupational violence and aggression sets out six domains: governance, prevention, training, response, reporting and investigation.
Safe Work Australia has also found that health care and social assistance feature prominently in workers’ compensation claims for violence and assault, and psychosocial hazard regulations in every jurisdiction now require employers to manage aggression from patients and clients.
What the course covers
- OVA frameworks and duties Your organisation’s OVA policy, work health and safety duties and the national and state guidance behind them.
- Assessing risk in clinical areas Higher risk settings such as emergency departments, mental health units and aged care, and how to assess them.
- Recognising imminent physical aggression Behavioural cues and the influence of clinical conditions, intoxication and distress.
- Positioning and the environment Using space, furniture, doors and exits, and avoiding isolation.
- Removing yourself from danger The first principle: recognising when to leave, using exits and distance, protecting others and calling for help before any physical intervention.
- Team response and Code Grey Calling for help, roles within a response team and working with security officers.
- After the incident Post-incident debriefs, reporting, support and learning from each event.
- Scenario training Scenarios built around your wards, clinics or facilities.
What participants will be able to do
- Explain the organisation’s OVA framework and each person’s role within it.
- Assess the risk of physical aggression in clinical settings.
- Use positioning and the environment to reduce the risk of harm.
- Remove themselves and others from danger and call for help early.
- Take part effectively in team responses, debriefs and incident reporting.
Who should attend
- Emergency department and mental health staff
- Nurses, midwives and doctors
- Aged care and disability support workers
- Health service security officers
- Reception, triage and patient transport staff
Choose the level and format that suits you
The course can be run at more than one level, so governance and day-to-day practice are covered together.
- Executive briefing. A short session for executives and boards on accountability, obligations, risk appetite and what good looks like.
- Manager and practitioner workshop. The full course, with case studies and practical exercises for the people who manage the risk day to day.
- Train-the-trainer. Preparing your own trainers to deliver the course inside your organisation, with the materials and guidance to do it well.
- In person or online. Delivered at your premises, at a venue you choose, or live online through Microsoft Teams and other platforms.
Bringing the capability in-house, with Agilient as your partner
More organisations want to build and keep this capability within their own teams. Agilient supports that. After delivering the course, Agilient can train your trainers, help your learning and development team plan the conversion of the course into an online module, and stay involved as an adviser, so your people deliver it with the benefit of Agilient’s hands-on experience.
How it works
- Get in touch. Tell us which course you are interested in, roughly how many people, where and when.
- Scoping conversation. An Agilient consultant discusses your people, sites, policies and recent incidents, and agrees the level, format and duration with you.
- Tailored content. Case studies, scenarios and exercises are built around your own environment and procedures.
- Delivery and handover. The course is delivered in person or online. Agilient can then train your trainers, support an online version, or review related procedures, controls or risk assessments.
Related Agilient services and resources
- Patient De-escalation Training for Healthcare Workers
- Physical Restraint and Personal Protection Training for Code Grey and response teams
- Security for health and hospitals
- Case study: a dedicated security team for a tertiary hospital
- Hospital CCTV guide
Frequently asked questions
What is OVA training?
OVA stands for occupational violence and aggression. OVA training helps staff prevent, recognise and respond to violence and aggression from patients, visitors and others at work, and is a core element of health service OVA frameworks.
Does the course teach restraint?
No. Agilient’s first principle is that staff remove themselves from the dangerous situation, de-escalate where it is safe and call for help. Where your organisation needs it, Agilient provides separate Physical Restraint and Personal Protection Training, aligned with your policies. For clinical restraint, that training follows your organisation’s clinical policies.
Should staff complete the patient de-escalation course first?
It is recommended. Most organisations run Patient De-escalation Training for Healthcare Workers first or combine the two courses into one day.
How long is the course?
Duration is agreed with you. Courses range from a two-hour briefing to a one, one and a half or two-day program, depending on your audience, risks and how much practical work you want included.
Can the course be delivered online?
Yes. Agilient delivers courses in person at your premises and live online through Microsoft Teams and other platforms, and can combine the two for teams spread across several locations.
Can our own team deliver this training in future?
Yes. Agilient runs train-the-trainer sessions so your people can deliver the course themselves, and can work with your learning and development team on a strategy for converting the course into an online module for induction and refreshers.
Can individuals book a place on this course?
No. Agilient runs its training in-house for organisations rather than as public courses, so individual places are not available. Group size, timing and content are agreed with each organisation.
Is this an accredited course?
No, and that is deliberate. It is not a nationally recognised qualification that follows a fixed syllabus, which can date quickly. It is designed and delivered by practitioners who have dealt with these issues first hand, tailored to your organisation, and built on case studies, active learning and practical exercises.
Ready to build this capability in your organisation?
Tell us what you need. Agilient will recommend the right level, format and duration, and tailor the course to your organisation.
Other in-house security training courses
- Security Risk Assessment and Management Course
- Security Threat Assessment Training
- Insider Threat Training
- Security Awareness Training Course
- Customer Aggression Training for Managers
- De-escalation Training for Customer-Facing Staff
- Managing Physical Aggression in the Workplace
- Patient De-escalation Training for Healthcare Workers
- Crisis Management Team Training and Tabletop Exercises
- Situational Awareness and Active Armed Offender Training
- Physical Restraint and Personal Protection Training
- CPTED Training: Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design
Sources
- The injuries sending health care workers to hospital, AIHW
- NSW Health hospital security review
- Occupational violence and aggression resources, Victorian Department of Health
- Work-related violence and aggression in Australia, Safe Work Australia
Last updated 29/09/2026.