Northumberland Hills Hospital isn’t commenting on a possible serious assault that took place recently.
A person came forward with information stating a nurse was attacked by a patient on the second floor of the hospital.
Today’s Northumberland was told the nurse was being strangled with a stethoscope. The attack was only stopped after another staff member stepped in to help.
Senior Director, Public Affairs and Strategic Partnerships Jennifer Gillard said, “we can’t comment on particular patient care details.”
“The nature of health care is such that aggressive (responsive) behaviour can and does occur by patients in the course of providing care.”
Gillard adds that to manage risk and ensure patient, staff and visitor safety, NHH has with the input from the Occupational Health and Safety Committee, a detailed Respectful Workplace Violence and Harassment Program.
“This program includes protocols common across hospital settings, to eliminate or minimize risk, and learn from incidents should they occur.”
“Another key element is crisis intervention training.”
Gillard stated in the event an incident occurs, it is reviewed by our Occupational Health and Safety Committee, and recommendations, if required, are brought forward for implementation.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
