‘Danger addresses’ in Courier Country double in five years

Ambulance Service ‘red flags’ homes where paramedics faced violence or threats

The number of addresses “red flagged” by ambulance crews in Tayside and Fife has more than doubled in five years.

A total of 279 homes across the region have been marked with a warning on the system after staff previously faced violence or threatening behaviour there.

Fife has seen a significant rise in the number of flags with 155 recorded in June 2018, an increase of almost 130% since 2013.

The number of problem addresses also increased in Tayside over the period, jumping from 41 to 124.

Data from May 2013 showed the total number of red-flagged addresses amounted to 109.

Figures for verbal and physical attacks on ambulance crews responding to emergency calls have also been revealed.

Official data released by the Scottish Ambulance Service through a Freedom of Information request showed a total of 92 assaults have been recorded in Courier Country since 2015.

Fife had the highest level of abuse directed towards crews with 59 incidents, 12 in this year alone.

Tayside had 26 attacks in the last three years.

Scottish Labour’s shadow health secretary Anas Sarwar called for tough action against those responsible.

He said: “Any attack on our hardworking NHS staff is simply disgraceful, and the culprits should be prosecuted fully.

“Paramedics are on the front line of our NHS responding to emergency calls when others need help.

“The last thing they should be worrying about when going to work is to be fearing for their own safety.”

Conservative public health spokeswoman Annie Wells said: “No paramedic should ever fear for their own wellbeing, especially when they are dedicating their lives to helping others.

“We clearly need to do more to keep them safe, which means tough action from the courts when those assaulting, or threatening to assault, ambulance workers are caught.

“That’s the least we could do to ensure these brave and indispensable employees can go about their work safely and effectively.”

Under legislation to protect emergency workers, anyone convicted can face up to a year behind bars, a £10,000 fine, or both.

Earlier this year the government revealed 6,509 common assaults were recorded on police, fire and ambulance workers across Scotland in 2016-17, equivalent to more than 17 per day.

A Scottish Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “Our staff should not have to fear for their safety when treating patients and keeping them safe is of paramount importance to us.

“That is why we have introduced a range of measures to help protect them. Individual addresses where staff have previously faced violence or threatening behaviour are automatically flagged to our crews, who can then request additional support, if required.

“Ambulance staff are also trained in managing aggression and assessing risk, enabling them to better judge when they need to wait for support from the police, or additional ambulance crews.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We value the high-quality care that Scottish Ambulance Service staff provide, often under challenging and physically demanding circumstances.

“The Emergency Workers Act includes penalties of up to 12 months imprisonment, a £10,000 fine, or both, to be imposed following conviction for offences against ambulance staff and we extended this legislation in 2008 to include health professionals working in the community.

“For more serious attacks, other offences such as assault can be used which mean offenders can face penalties up to life imprisonment.

“All workers deserve protection from abuse and violence.”

We need to do more to keep staff safe which means tough action from the courts when these people are caught

New figures showing the extent to which ambulance workers are exposed to violence on a daily basis make for sickening reading. The number of addresses in Tayside and Fife which have been “red-flagged” by crews because of the risk of attack has more than doubled in the last five years.

A total of 279 homes across the region are among more than 2,500 in Scotland where safety concerns are so serious that paramedics are only supposed to respond to a 999 call if police back-up is available.

It comes after figures released by the Scottish Government earlier this year showed there were 6,509 common assaults on police, fire and ambulance workers across Scotland in 2016/17.

Every day emergency crews are despatched to the kind of situations the rest of us would rather run a mile from.

It is entirely unnacceptable that these selfless individuals should fear the threat of violence from the very people they have gone to help.

Legislation is already in place in the form of the Emergency Workers Act, meaning those convicted can face up to a year behind bars, a £10,000 fine, or both. In more serious cases of assault, offenders rightly run the risk of life imprisonment.

When people assault or threaten to assault 999 crews they must be prosecuted and, if convicted, the punishment must fit the crime.

Shadow health secretary Anas Sarwar said paramedics on the NHS front line should not have to worry about their safety at work.