This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Campaign to stop attacks on NHS staff
19/12/2003
A new campaign aimed at ending aggression towards NHS
staff has been launched across the country after its
successful pilot in Fife and Tayside.
The campaign comprises a series of posters - some
bearing the well-known saying "gonnae no dae that" - and
CDs designed to raise staff and public awareness of the
problem.
In Kirkcaldy, Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said:
"Attacks on all NHS staff are unacceptable, dangerous
and callous and will not be tolerated. Through these new
posters we hope to raise awareness among patients and the
public at large that such incidents cannot go on.
"There is no excuse for making any NHS worker - be it a
GP, dentist, nurse or receptionist - a target for any kind
of aggression or violence. It is intolerable to direct such
behaviour against the very people who are trying to care
for others.
"Staff in hospitals and surgeries should not be
subjected to attacks, be they physical or verbal, as they
go about their work and these materials will also give them
useful guidance on managing such incidents.
"As well as the new posters and CDs, the Executive has
also issued guidelines on action that could be taken
against persistently violent patients - including the
ultimate sanction of withholding treatment.
"We are also consulting on legislation that will make it
an offence to assault, obstruct or hinder emergency service
workers who are carrying out their duty. In addition,
nurses, doctors and others working in public services are
covered by the provision that was introduced by the Lord
Advocate earlier this year, which states that an offence
against them in the line of their work should be considered
an aggravating factor in any case of assault.
"We need people to act responsibly no matter how
distressed or frustrated they may feel. Shouting and being
abusive to NHS staff will not help. They must be able to
work with out fear of attack."
Scottish Regional Officer for UNISON Health Jim Devine
said:
"Scotland's largest healthcare union, UNISON, is pleased
to be associated with this initiative. It is part of the
ongoing campaign to remind the public of Scotland that it
is not part of a healthcare worker's job to be physically
or verbally abused while at work."
Dr Bill O'Neill, Scottish Secretary of the British
Medical Association, said:
"It is unacceptable that doctors and other health care
workers accept violence, or the threat of violence, as part
of their jobs. We are therefore delighted that today
Ministers are sending out a clear message of zero tolerance
of violence against all health service workers.
"Our own research has found that more than one in three
doctors have experienced some form of violence over the
past year and over half state that violence is a problem in
their workplace.
"Campaigns such as this send a clear message to the
public. However, they must run in tandem with prevention
strategies such as management of aggression training. The
BMA supports the use of sanctions against violent patients
with prosecution for more serious offenders."
Karen Niven of the Occupational Health & Safety
Advisory Service (OHSAS), which developed the materials for
the campaign, added:
"This has been a collaboration between experts in the
management of violence and aggression, designers, IT
experts and occupational health and safety expertise. It
has therefore been produced by staff working in the NHS for
staff working in the NHS, and as such is a unique and
enormously useful set of resources.
"The piloting carried out prior to the launch revealed
that users found the products not only useful but
informative and easy to use and it is hoped that a further
series of interactive CDs can be produced in the future for
other vulnerable staff groups."