Thousands of violent incidents against A&E nurses
Nurses are facing 'abhorrent' levels of violence
Nurses are facing almost double the number of violent incidents in A&E departments including being punched, spat at and even having a gun pointed at one of them.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said more must be done to protect NHS staff.
The nursing Union also said that long waits in A&E are also leading to anger among patients who are not prone to violence.
Without action to tackle long waits, corridor care and “chronic” staffing problems, then rates of violence will continue to rise, the RCN warned.
4,054 cases of physical violence in 2024
It comes after it found rising rates of violence towards staff after sending freedom of information (FOI) requests to NHS hospitals with accident and emergency departments.
Figures from 89 hospital trusts, out of a possible 129, revealed there were 4,054 cases of physical violence against A&E staff recorded in 2024, up from 2,093 in 2019, the RCN said.
Nurses punched, spat at and threatened
One senior A&E nurse based in east London told the RCN she has seen colleagues punched and kicked and described how a colleague had a gun pointed at them.
She herself had been spat at by a patient and threatened with an acid attack.
A senior charge nurse from the East Midlands, Rachelle McCarthy, told the RCN that “even patients you would expect to be placid are becoming irate because of just how long they have to wait”.
“You can only imagine the behaviour of those who are already prone to violence,” she added.
Ms McCarthy also told the union she was punched “square in the face” by a “drunk, six foot two bloke”.
Another nurse said: “It’s not going to help with our retention and recruitment if you think you’re going to be clobbered every shift.”
Sarah Tappy, a senior sister in an A&E in east London, was knocked unconscious after being punched in the head by a patient.
“The violence is awful,” she said. “And it’s just constant. Nurses, doctors, receptionists – none of us feels safe.”
RCN general secretary and chief executive Professor Nicola Ranger said: “Nursing staff not only go to work underpaid and undervalued but now face a rising tide of violence.
“It leads to both physical and mental scarring, lengthy time off and sometimes staff never returning.
“Measures to keep staff safe day-to-day are crucial, but the stark reality is that unless the Government does something about lengthy waits, corridor care and understaffed nursing teams, more nursing staff will become victims of this utterly abhorrent behaviour.
“Left unaddressed, this could see plans to reform the NHS fail completely.”
The Department of Health and Social Care has been approached for comment.