EL PASO, Texas — William Beaumont Army Medical Center hosted its annual Safety Day on June 12, 2026, at the hospital’s main campus to foster an enduring and proactive culture of occupational, health, and environmental safety.
The command’s safety office organized this comprehensive event to eliminate preventable workplace harm, reduce physical injuries, and establish a transparent, continuous-improvement culture across all departments. This critical educational initiative served as a powerful reminder to medical staff and administrative personnel about the vital importance of maintaining safe working conditions to minimize accidents.
"Prioritizing the welfare of our employees not only increases morale and productivity, but it also reduces the immense human, social, and economic costs that preventable workplace accidents inevitably bring," said Keith Johnson, the occupational health and safety manager for the medical center. "Our goal is to build a voluntary, self-sustaining culture of safety where team members are motivated to look out for one another every single day."
Johnson, along with his coworkers, designed the training to be highly interactive, moving away from traditional classroom lectures to prioritize engagement. Soldiers and Department of the Army Civilians actively participated in realistic, simulated scenarios featuring modern emergency response equipment, such as the BullsEX fire trainer. Participants also utilized virtual reality fire extinguisher goggles and maneuvered the Texas A&M University driving simulator cart to build practical safety skills in a controlled environment.
A diverse group of community partners facilitated these hands-on demonstrations, including the El Paso Police Department, Fort Bliss Fire Services, and Texas A&M health services. Additional vital safety resources and training scenarios were presented by the Texas Department of Transportation, the Fort Bliss Iron Zero program, and the Fort Bliss Motorcycle Safety program. Furthermore, the medical center's own Trauma Team was on-site teaching life-saving medical skills to attendees throughout the day.
According to Johnson, investing in the physical welfare and readiness of healthcare employees directly improves operational morale and leads to significantly higher overall productivity. This proactive emphasis on workplace safety creates a safer hospital environment while representing a major collaborative win for the El Paso community and the medical center.