Ambulance chiefs plead for people to respect staff ahead of bank holiday weekend
As the emergency services brace themselves for a busy extended bank holiday weekend ambulance bosses have pleaded with the public to treat them with respect.
The call, from both West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) and the Wales Ambulance Service, comes as assaults against their workers continue to rise.
There were 608 physical assaults on WMAS staff in the year up to April – up from 581 the previous year.
Instances of verbal abuse have also risen to 1,186, from 1,090 the year before.
In Wales the monthly average of emergency worker assaults has increased from 203 in 2019, to 226 in 2020, to 237 in 2021, representing a year-on-year increase of 4.9 per cent.
Emergency Services Operations Delivery Director at WMAS, Nathan Hudson, urged people to speak out and help protect workers where they see instances of abuse.
He said: "Ambulance staff are there to help people in their hour of need.
"We know that the vast majority of the public find violence against our staff to be abhorrent. What we need is for the public to make sure that such actions become socially unacceptable.
"That would give the friends and family of those who do carry out such attacks the confidence to step in and stop them before they act.
"The impact that violence against our staff has on their lives can be profound: we have seen cases where colleagues are left scared to be alone with a patient; some get flash backs and other mental health impacts.
"These impacts are on top of the recovery that is needed for their physical injuries that may stop them being able to work for days, weeks or months.
"Violence is not acceptable and we all need to work together to stop it happening.”
Jason Killens, Chief Executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: “The last couple of years have been a fraught time for all of us, but that’s no excuse to assault an emergency worker, who are people, just like you and I.
“With a Bank Holiday weekend comes lots of people enjoying the revelry, and with alcohol consumption usually comes an increase in assaults.
“There were 80 verbal attacks alone on our ambulance control room staff in the second half of last year.
“We know it’s distressing when you’re waiting for help, but abusing our call handlers is not the answer – if anything, it could potentially delay help.
“On the road meanwhile, crews might have no choice but to leave a scene if their safety is compromised, and that’s not helpful for anyone, especially the patient.
“The debt of gratitude we owe to our emergency workers has never been greater, so please treat them with respect.”
