'We'll act to protect our nurses'

From the Telegraph & Argus, first published Thursday 3rd Mar 2005.

New laws could be passed in a bid to tackle the increasing levels of violence against nurses and hospital staff.

Leader of the Commons Peter Hain has revealed that the Government could make it an offence to interfere with nurses and other public servants carrying out their duties.

Mr Hain backed the Telegraph & Argus End The Abuse campaign aimed at stopping violence against frontline nursing staff, and said: "You keep these things under continual review and there will be opportunities to get in quick legislation in the next Queen's Speech if we find we need it."

"Violence against hospital staff is a very, very serious problem and there's been a particularly serious problem in Bradford."

The T&A campaign, which has also won the backing of Prime Minister Tony Blair and Health Secretary John Reid, was launched after figures showed more than 400 staff at Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke's Hospital had suffered violence or intimidation by patients or their families in the six months to October last year.

Incidents of aggression against staff had doubled in just six years.

And in the last three months of last year, Airedale Hospital recorded 30 incidents of verbal aggression against staff from the public and 20 incidents of verbal threats from the public.

In the wake of Mr Hain's comments, the Royal College of Nursing's regional officer Susan West said: "We want assault against healthcare professionals to have the same legal status as assaulting a police officer, with attackers prosecuted and given appropriate sentences.

"We are pleased with the work done by hospital Trusts in Leeds and Bradford but the legislation is important - it sends out a strong message. We need it now. There were 116,000 violent attacks on NHS staff in the UK last year. What more do the politicians need?"

Unison Bradford health branch secretary Nick Marlborough said the union, which has been campaigning for legislation, would welcome any change in the law to protect staff.

He added: "I would encourage ministers to look at this more closely sooner rather than later to prevent further injuries to staff."

Bradford North MP Terry Rooney said: "Mr Hain is not saying there will be longer sentences. There needs to be a stronger penalty for people convicted of these offences. There should be minimum sentences for assaulting health workers so the public gets the message that this behaviour is not tolerated."

A spokesman for Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke's Hospital said the Trust welcomed any initiative that supported its efforts to protect staff from violence or verbal abuse and help put the patients and visitors responsible before the courts.

He added: "While we would not hesitate to seek a prosecution against anyone who commits a crime against our staff, the proposed new laws would further hammer home the message that there is no place for violence and abuse in the NHS."

There was a more cautious welcome for government plans, announced yesterday, to issue health workers in the community with hi-tech panic alarms.

The high profile scheme, launched by Health Secretary John Reid, would see lone workers such as midwives, doctors and nurses, given personal alarms in a bid to curb rising incidences of violence.

But The T&A has learned each alarm, which NHS workers can press to alert police or hospital security, will cost between £110 and £170, and it will be up to each of the district's health trusts to decide whether to pick up the bill for their staff.

The Department of Health is not offering Trusts any extra cash to pay for the devices, which would be linked to a recording machine so a tape of the incident could be used as evidence in court, following successful trials.

A spokesman for the NHS Security Management Service said: "We are not forcing Trusts to buy the device. They can lease it at £22 per month. It's up to each trust. We are saying it's good for you and will protect your staff from violence. They must look at how many lone workers they have. It's part of our bigger policy."

Bradford City Teaching Primary Care Trust, which looks after GP and dentist services in inner city Bradford is about to launch its own pilot scheme instead, using a device developed within the PCT.

Director of Corporate Development Sandra Knight for the tPCT said: "We already have many systems in place, including staff training, personal alarms and a Lone Working Policy, to make sure we manage any potential risks which staff may meet in their working day.

"We are also about to start a pilot scheme using a mobile IT alarm system which has been developed within the tPCT. This will provide staff working on their own in the community with an extra safeguard as it can trigger a chain of support if someone experiences problems within a home or other setting."

A spokesman for Bradford Teaching Hospitals Trust said: "We welcome any initiative that further protects NHS staff in the face of increased incidents of violence and aggression. Although we have not piloted these devices we look forward to studying the results of the pilot trials closely."

Unison head of negotiations in Yorkshire and Humberside Alan Hughes said: "On the face of it this system seems to offer improved safety and security for public sector workers.

"There will obviously be cost implications but I sincerely hope they will be sorted out because we cannot put too high a price on people's health and safety."

Shadow Health Secretary of State for Health Andrew Lansley MP, who was visiting Bradford Royal Infirmary to see the hospital's cardiorespiratory department and the coronary care unit yesterday, said: "If the alarms are necessary I do not think the public would want us to compromise on the safety of staff. The public are paying enormous amounts in tax and expect their healthcare staff to be protected. I do not think one can economise by compromising the safety of NHS staff."

Mr Lansley added that strengthening legislation was something that was being looked into by the Conservatives.

"We need to make sure there is a strong disincentive against people using violence and abuse against NHS staff," he added.

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