Health Minister Dr Shane Reti is again reminding New Zealanders that violence against patients, visitors and health workers won’t be tolerated, with additional security for hospital emergency departments across the country this summer.
“Staff and patients in our EDs deserve to feel safe when they’re working or visiting hospitals across New Zealand,” says Dr Reti.
“EDs can be particularly busy and stressful during the holiday period and our Government is again taking extra safety steps to ease this, building on last year’s successful programme and our additional commitment in Budget 2024.”
Budget 2024 committed $31 million over four years for:
- Increased security for eight high-priority EDs
- Surge capacity in busy periods for all EDs, and
- Additional training for Health New Zealand’s security team of more than 1,000 frontline staff.
“Our 100-day plan prioritised security in emergency departments and Budget 2024 backed this up by providing that multi-year funding to employ 44 additional full time security personnel across our eight high-priority emergency departments.
“Most of these guards are now in place. Remaining vacancies will be filled with temporary cover while recruitment for full time positions is underway in Auckland, Wellington, Middlemore and Dunedin hospitals.
“As, part of Budget 2024 we also announced a flexible funding package allowing Health NZ to surge security support across all 33 emergency departments when needed. This is particularly helpful during summer for the many events being held in regional and rural areas.
“Twenty hospitals will receive additional funding this summer.
“Health NZ also has an additional $408,000 available to provide surge security into all EDs if there is a major incident or event that requires a greater security presence.
“Budget 2024 also included support for additional training and support for ED security teams, behavioural incident leads and clinical staff. The focus of this training is on de-escalation and safe restraint, as well as other training to help keep themselves and others safe.
“I’m pleased to announce this training is ready to be delivered with the first programmes starting on 13 January, and all eight priority EDs fully trained by May 2025.
“Anyone working or visiting our EDs should be safe and welcomed,” Dr Reti says.
EDs are overcrowded with people in desperate need of health services and staffed by overworked health professionals.
All of them ought to be safe and all patients and support people ought to be behaving appropriately and with consideration for staff and other patients.
Some of those who necessitate security will have mental health problems, some will be drunk or drugged; and some will have neither of those excuses.
That security is necessary because of bad behaviour is shameful and a sad reflection on how low standards of too many people have fallen.
Ele Ludemann is a North Otago farmer and journalist, who blogs HERE - where this article was sourced.
3 comments:
Shameful indeed. But who allowed the disrespect to creep into hospitals “marae style” in the first place. That’s right, “politically correct” government policies.
Having been in Middlemore ED a couple of times at night, I'm worried for my own safety if I need to go back.
Having to wait before being triaged is a scary experience because of the loose cannons there with attitude.
How have we, as a society, allowed this situation where hospitals are no longer sacrosanct ?
Guess who the problem is
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