Hospital staff attackers 'must be jailed'

Local & National

Thursday, September 27, 2007

By Will Ellison

Ulster health chiefs last night warned that there must be immediate jail sentences for anyone convicted of attacks on hospital staff.

The warning comes after a doctor was assaulted in Londonderry by a patient he was treating in Altnagelvin hospital's accident and emergency department on Tuesday night.

This was the first attack at the hospital following the launch of the Zero Tolerance campaign to stamp out assaults on staff in Northern Ireland hospitals.

Posters have been carried on buses and posted at bus shelters and at hospital facilities warning patients and their relatives that a policy of 'zero tolerance' is now in operation.

The doctor - who has only been working at Altnagelvin for a month - was tending to a patient when the man turned on him. He received a punch to the head, which knocked him to the floor.

The man then lashed out at medical equipment in the accident and emergency ward before running out of the hospital.

The doctor, who did not want to be identified, was stunned but, despite his injuries, he insisted on returning to work.

His colleague, Dr Alan McKinney, a consultant at Altnagelvin's casualty department, last night insisted that the full force of the law must be brought to bear on anyone attacking medical staff.

He pointed out: "The message of zero tolerance was plastered on the backs of buses and bus shelters since (Health Minister) Michael McGimpsey launched the campaign and it tells people there is no excuse with alcohol or anything else.

"The public and staff are put at risk and there were warnings that all incidents would be followed through to their conclusion. We are determined to stamp out this behaviour.

"The public has to understand that we cannot lock the doors and have security guards preventing access, but the counter to that is that it is not acceptable to assault staff."

He also said that many attacks are alcohol related but that this should never be acceptable as an excuse.

"Alcohol is the 'get out of jail card'," he said. "But someone who is capable of punching someone then running out of the hospital is not someone who doesn't know what they are doing."

Dr Tom Black, a GP in Derry and a representative of the British Medical Association, said that immediate custodial sentences were needed to crack down on the problem.

Lily Kerr, head of bargaining at health union Unison, said: "This is an outrage and, unfortunately, happens all too often. I seriously hope that there will be legal action taken against the patient.

"Unison's view is that patients who attack staff should get a custodial sentence. Patients and members of their families who verbally abuse staff should be fined at least £1,000. Only when these sort of deterrents are in place can we say there is zero tolerance of this sort of behaviour."

A Western Health and Social Care Trust spokesman said: "The Trust condemns any such incidents and will continue to work with the relevant authorities to prevent such incidents from occurring."

A spokesperson for the PSNI said: "Police have reviewed CCTV footage and are following a definite line of enquiry."