No members of the public at listening event on Antrim Area Hospital body-worn cameras proposal
No members of the public turned up for a listening event held by the Northern Health and Social Care Trust at Dunsilly Hotel, in Antrim, on Wednesday evening (March 12).
The event was held as part of a public consultation into a proposed body-worn camera trial, an audio and video recording system, in the emergency department at Antrim Area Hospital.
It is proposed that 12 ED staff members will take part voluntarily in a 12-week pilot. The wearer will have to state when recording commences.
The Northern Trust has two emergency departments – at Antrim Hospital and at Causeway Hospital in Coleraine. Between April 2023 and March 2024, there were 101,692 attendances at Antrim’s ED.
The Northern Trust says that ED departments are “busy, highly pressured and unpredictable and “an increasing trend of violence and aggression adds to staff and service pressures”.
The Trust has stressed that it “condemns such incidents and has a duty to provide a safe and secure working environment” and that “deliberate acts of violence and aggression have absolutely no place in our hospitals”.
It also has a duty to ensure the safety of its staff and to provide a safe and secure working environment.
It has reported an average of 2,348 incidents in all Trust facilities during the past three years. Last year, there were 22 physical incidents, 13 verbal and four others at Antrim Hospital’s ED, 12 of which required police assistance.
Medical Consultant
Dr Eimhear Kearney, emergency medical consultant, reported: “We are seeing attacks on staff every day. They vary from verbal insults and tip over into physical assaults and violent aggression.”
Physical and verbal aggression in the ED department has included a patient punching a window and a cardiac monitor, smashing the screen; nursing staff and a carer were punched, grabbed and spat at; biting a registrar on the finger and breaking the skin; a patient hitting a health care assistant in the chest, kicked and punched in the abdomen; a patient who threatened another patient in the next bed.
Sexual and inappropriate behaviour included a patient slapping and grabbing other patients and staff on the bottom and trying to kiss patients and staff. A patient exposed himself in front of staff, visitors and patients whilst urinating on the floor.
Audrey Harris, divisional director of medicine and emergency medicine, said: “While I wholeheartedly recognise the vast majority of patients and families who access our emergency departments and receive care are appreciative, it is not acceptable that some choose to use aggression, both verbal and physical. This can have adverse effects for our staff and other patients and cannot continue to escalate.
“This proposal is an opportunity to pilot an intervention in our emergency department. The pilot has potential to deter individuals from acting inappropriately or being aggressive with the intent of reducing the severity should such events occur.”
Sister Bronagh Gilmore, ward manager, commented: “In wearing body-worn cameras, our staff will be able to feel safe in their working environment and more equipped to de-escalate aggressive behaviour.
“We as a department envisage through the use of body-worn cameras, a positive impact for both staff and patients.” The consultation will continue until May 1.
Michelle Weir, Local Democracy Reporter