15,000 attacks on mental health staff

And the number of assaults in the region’s mental health units has rocketed by 23 per cent since 2012-13, leading to calls for tougher security measures to protect workers.

Figures obtained by via a Freedom of Information request showed over the period there was a total of 23,363 attacks across the region’s four mental health trusts: the Black Country Partnership, the Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership, the South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Trust, and the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Foundation Trust.

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It equates to an average of 13 attacks a day.

Of those 15,631 involved patients attacking staff and 7,679 were patient-on-patient assaults.

The figures also show that on 54 occasions staff attacked patients, while there were three incidents where staff attacked other workers.

South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Trust saw the biggest number of incidents with 9,728 attacks.

Across the region there were 4,099 attacks reported in 2012-13, and 5,052 in 2016-17 - an increase of 23 per cent.

The data was sourced by the Lib Dems, whose West Midlands spokesman Rob Quarmby, said: “We should take a zero tolerance approach against anyone who attacks any of our staff either physically or verbally and we work with local police in the management of aggressive and violent individuals.

“The safety of staff and patients is the most important thing and we take the issue of hospital security very seriously.

“Staff should be told to report all violent incidents to the police”

Public service union Unison revealed that in a survey of more than 1,000 mental health staff, 42 per cent of responders said they had been victims of violence over the last year.

One worker described being ‘repeatedly punched to the floor’, while others spoke of ‘attempted strangulation’ or being head-butted, spat on, kicked and bitten.

Almost one third of mental health workers said levels of violence had risen in the last year and most blamed staff shortages and overuse of agency staff for the increase.

Some staff said that being on the receiving end of violent behaviour 'goes with the job'. One said: “On a daily basis I would say that patients are verbally aggressive. Rather than being an unusual occurrence I now consider this almost a default position for a large number of patients.”

Six in 10 staff said they were unable to provide proper care because they did not have enough time.

Three-quarters feel stressed at least once a week because of work and 36 per cent said they feel stressed every day.

More than one in five said they had taken sick leave over the past year as a result of stress and burnout.

Half of staff believed their own mental wellbeing was not looked after by their employer.

Sara Gorton, head of health at Unison, said staff shortages meant fewer people were around to deal with rising numbers of patients with complex needs.

“This is leading to an increase in violence and a working environment that makes it more difficult to retain staff,” she said.

The Department of Health said it was ‘completely unacceptable’ for NHS staff to face violence or aggression at work.

A spokesman said £11.6bn had been invested last year and it was creating 21,000 new posts by 2021.