Assaults on medical staff intolerable
Who in their right mind would ever consider it appropriate to thump a nurse? No one, of course. But people who do swing an arm or a leg, or a wild-eyed head-butt, are unlikely to be in their right mind. And therein lies the complication in preventing and dealing with this too-common occurrence.
Thousands of nursing and hospital staff have reported being assaulted on the job over the past few years, according to numbers released by district health boards. Nurses say the problem is even bigger as many don’t report attacks, feeling it’s part of the job.
Information provided to the Herald by district health boards (DHBs) and made available through the Official Information Act (OIA) shows an alarming number of assaults against hospital staff and nurses.
The data, from 14 of the 20 New Zealand DHBs, showed a total of 1958 assaults against hospital staff in 2018 – slightly up from 1945 the year prior and 1934 in 2016. Canterbury DHB’s records show there were 2904 instances of physical assaults on staff between 2015 and 2018. There were 569 recorded assaults last year.
District health boards need to exercise zero tolerance to even mild forms of aggression which can escalate into physical violence.
The NZ Nurses’ Organisation says it is extremely concerned about the frequency of assaults on nurses across the country and has called for law changes to impose greater penalties on those who commit violent acts against hospital staff.
It is hard to disagree with firmly punishing those who do harm to our medical staff, but this should be only part of our response. It is unlikely many assailants will bear in mind the severity of the potential penalty before lashing out. A stiffer fine or period of cooling off in a cell may prevent someone reoffending but is unlikely to sway anyone else under the influence of the “red mist”.
Unfortunately, it is the lot of medical providers to attend to the highly emotional and agitated; sometimes people who feel not enough is being done for them or their family member. Many of those who abuse and harass staff will be in pain, or anguish, or suffering from mental health issues.
That said, any attack on our healthcare providers is intolerable. Hospitals are the crucial doors for the sick and injured, and must remain open for this purpose. A part of the triage and admission process should also include a thorough threat assessment, and procedures must be strengthened around higher-risk situations.
Anyone is capable of an irrational moment, but early signs of agitation should be monitored and managed. Should prevention fail, those who assault staff should be treated as anyone else who commits an assault. They should be arrested and put through the justice system. The courts have the capacity to mete out entirely appropriate penalties, including trespassing offenders if required.
Medical workers are our saviours and protectors. We must also be theirs.