NHS steps up efforts to curb rising violence against staff

The NHS Business Services Authority has teamed up with the police and the Crown Prosecution Service to stem the growing number of episodes of violence and antisocial behaviour against NHS staff.

The number of reported physical assaults on NHS staff in England has increased by more than 1000 in the past year, from 56 718 in 2009-10 to 57 830 in 2010-11.

NHS Protect, the branch of the authority responsible for protecting NHS staff and resources from crime, has signed an agreement with the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Crown Prosecution Service pledging closer local working arrangements between the three organisations to ensure criminal assaults are identified and do not go unpunished.

The number of sanctions taken against people who assault NHS staff has increased by almost a quarter on last year: 1397 criminal sanctions were applied following cases of assault in 2010-11, compared with 1128 in 2009-10. NHS Protect, the Association of Chief Police Officers, and the Crown Prosecution Service all encourage individual police services, courts, and NHS bodies to seek the strongest possible action against people who assault NHS staff.

“NHS staff do a very difficult job in challenging circumstances,” said Pam Bowen, senior policy adviser at the Crown Prosecution Service. “This agreement should reassure healthcare workers across England that such abuse will not be tolerated and that their own welfare is just as important as that of the patients they treat.”

• The joint working agreement is available online at www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/Documents/SecurityManagement/Joint_Working_Agreement_between_ACPO_CPS_NHS_Protect.pdf.