{"id":1193,"date":"2013-03-05T09:15:28","date_gmt":"2013-03-05T09:15:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bsb.lasunison.com\/?p=1193"},"modified":"2013-03-05T09:15:28","modified_gmt":"2013-03-05T09:15:28","slug":"ambulance-staff-are-health-partners-not-sparring-partners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ericsblog.lasunison.com\/?p=1193","title":{"rendered":"Ambulance Staff Are Health Partners Not Sparring Partners."},"content":{"rendered":"

Ambulance Staff are not employed to be hit, punched, threatened, abused or assaulted!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let everyone be clear: IT IS NOT PART OF THE JOB!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ambulance Staff do not have to ‘grin and bear it’!<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is not in our Contract of Employment, nor is it in the Agenda for Change National Handbook!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ambulance Staff shouldn’t have to worry that every time they respond to a 999 call there is a potential for violence and them to be assaulted. <\/strong><\/p>\n

However, it does happen. Ambulance work, by its very nature, puts staff at risk.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ambulance Staff, as far as they can be, are always aware of danger.\u00c2\u00a0 Experienced staff don’t only have eyes in the back of their head, but have eyes growing out of their ears, hands and feet! The problem is, as even the multi-eyed staff will tell you, is\u00c2\u00a0that you just\u00c2\u00a0don’t know who it is that will use violence against you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Instead of helping and treating\u00c2\u00a0the patient, ambulance staff sometimes\u00c2\u00a0end up defending themselves against being assaulted by the patient, or bystander, or family member, or passer-by, or all four!<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is one part of the job that the majority of the public never see, or even hear about. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Medical dramas on TV rarely show this side of their \u00c2\u00a0glamorous paramedic star as they speed through the streets on their next life-saving mission (deep in thoughts about the ambulance technician they love, who, at that very minute, is racing into a burning house to save the twins….!).<\/strong><\/p>\n

People hit ambulance staff! Hard to believe isn’t it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ambulance Services are much better now in prosecuting people who assault staff, although more could be done of course. Training for staff is better, although more\u00c2\u00a0has to\u00c2\u00a0be done.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ambulance Staff need to know that they<\/strong> have a right to defend themselves against assault and that their Ambulance Service will support them in the right way. <\/strong><\/p>\n

We have to shake ourselves out of this litigation worry mode and put staff first. We need to\u00c2\u00a0understand, agree and act on these three things:<\/strong><\/p>\n