Natalie Karn has only been a nurse for two years, but has already been assaulted 20 times.
"I've been punched. I've been hit with call lights. I've been kicked, I've been a victim of sexual assault as well. Males especially, smacking on the bottom, comments, things of that nature," said Karn.
Currently, Ohio treats assaults on nurses as misdemeanors. A new bill would change it to a felony.
"It's just equity. There's a lot of other professions that have had this in the past. Law enforcement, fire guys, EMS have had protection that the health care work force hasn't," said Nancie Bechtel, spokeswoman for Ohio Emergency Room nurses. "Nurses are assaulted in our state in emergency departments on a daily basis."
Ohio nurses brought their case to the statehouse to get Ohio law on their side, reported ONN's Jim Heath.
"I think it will give nurses a little more assertiveness to say 'no, you've got to stop this," said Jeri Milstead, a nurse for 55 years.
She said violence against nurses is going up.
"It doesn't just have to happen in emergency rooms... I worked with a consultant in a group in a general hospital who were very concerned about some physicians who were just a real trip to try to deal with," said Milstead.
Whether it's violent patients or workplace harassment, nurses say their own well being is often the last thing they worry about. Many say they are so focused on caring for patients that they don't always protect themselves.
