24 August 2021
Violent Code Black incidents in South Australian hospitals could blow out to more than 13,000 in 2021, representing a frightening surge in dangerous incidents since 2016.
SA Health Code Black figures for the first four months of this year reveal 4,385 recorded incidents - at an average of 36.5 a day, The Advertiser reported in its front-page story on Tuesday.
The number of violent and aggressive incidents has jumped by more than 25 per cent across the state’s hospitals, from 10,186 in 2016 to 12,791 last year. Code Blacks at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital have more than doubled over the past five years.
The ANMF (SA Branch) CEO/Secretary Adj Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars AM told The Advertiser the fear among nursing staff was “palpable”.
Ms Dabars said staff exposed to violent incidents suffered both physically and mentally, causing some to quit their jobs.
She said the “crushing demand” on the state’s hospitals was a key cause of the increase in violence being reported, with clogged emergency departments leaving patients waiting for “arduously long” periods.
“We also have reports of increases in mental health intakes, patients housed sometimes for days in emergency departments which, by their high-stimulus 24/7 nature, are totally inappropriate environments for people with mental health care needs, resulting in violent, threatening outbursts,” Ms Dabars told The Advertiser.
She said an increase in mental health beds and an immediate injection of an extra 30 to 40 mental health nurses were required to cover the existing workforce shortfall alone.
Ms Dabars told FIVEAA morning presenter Leon Byner that the ANMF (SA Branch) had a meeting scheduled with SA Health representative in early September to discuss violence and safety in the system.
“There is an absolute right to health and safety in the workplace and a responsibility on them to do it,’’ she said.
“But yet we still have a system where staff are simply not supported to avoid these situations. There should be systems and structures in place.’’
Ms Dabars told FIVEAA the violence and aggression was “symptomatic of a highly stressed system. There are simply not enough resources put in the system as it is. And that in itself drives the violence and the aggression.
“So what we want to see is a system-wide response. And the other thing that we are now looking for, because of a lack of action in this area, is that we want to have a right to prosecute employers for failing to act on their occupational Health Safety and Welfare obligations.
“We don't have a right at the moment to prosecute, but we are asking in our pre-election platform, we are asking for the political parties to sign up to a commitment that they would change the law and permit unions and federations such as ours to prosecute in the event that the regulator fails to do so.
“We do think that would drive behaviour. This is a bit of a carrot and stick approach. We don't really want to be using sticks, but the reality is that it's being used on our members every day.’’
Ms Dabars also told FIVEAA the ANMF (SA Branch) has been liaising with police.
“We have recently met with the police who were very supportive. And we have raised concerns with them that we were hearing from members that there didn’t seem to be a focus on pursuing perpetrators,’’ she said.
“We have had a very positive conversation with senior people at the police who have committed to us and have said that is absolutely not the intention, the intention should be absolutely to prosecute and to pursue offenders to the full extent of the law.
“So we’re talking to our members now and saying ‘look, if you do have any events, obviously the preference is to prevent rather than react, but if there are events and you don’t feel like your case is being dealt with appropriately, please do let us know and we can raise it directly with the police department’.
“And the police have committed to respond in an appropriate way.’’
To get involved with the ANMF (SA Branch)’s anti-violence campaign, visit:
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