Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
999 CREWS ATTACKED EVERY WEEK
Paramedics assaulted 452 times in year
PARAMEDICS are being attacked up to nine times every week in Northern Ireland.
Figures obtained by the Mirror through a Freedom of Information request show ambulance service staff were assaulted 452 times in the past year.
A total of 171 were physical attacks, 102 physical threats, 12 were sexual assaults and staff were verbally abused on 167 occasions.
Unison head of health Sara Gorton said: “It’s horrific that ambulance workers face increasing abuse and violence in the line of duty. This should never be part of the job.
“These assaults can cause longterm physical and mental harm. Courts must take advantage of new laws and give attackers stiffer jail terms.
“Employers and the Government also must do more to prevent assaults and protect staff.”
The number of attacks has actually fallen compared to 2017/18, when there were 482.
On one occasion in Banbridge, Co Down, a man threatened a staff member with a six-inch knife.
They said in a report the situation “was not suitable for a lone worker and I felt stressed and annoyed at how close this was to my face.
“I was covered in blood on my clothes which I only realised afterwards and strained my right wrist and twisted my back trying to leave the property quickly”.
A member of ambulance staff was assaulted every 90 minutes last year across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
There were at least 5,855 recorded incidents in the past year including physical and non-physical attacks.
In some cases ambulance staff were attacked with knives and clubs and there were at least 71 sexual assaults.
Ambulance staff in London were assaulted 698 times, North West workers were assaulted 363 times, South Central crews 198 times and West Midlands staff 1,066 times.
South Western ambulance workers were assaulted 614 times while the North East crews 535 times.
East of England and East Midlands ambulance service staff were assaulted 1,295 and 896 times respectively while in Scotland there were 269 assaults.