Hospital staff attacked 1,000 times a year

Dozens of staff-on-staff incidents were also recorded each year across two hospitals including Gloucestershire Royal

Staff at two hospitals have been attacked more than 1,000 times a year in total in recent years, figures from a trust have revealed.

And staff themselves have been involved in more than 100 violent or verbally abusive incidents on colleagues each year, according to the data from Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

In an effort to reduce attacks at Gloucester Royal and Cheltenham General hospitals, the trust has bought 18 body-worn cameras for "hotspot" areas to de-escalate situations and pass evidence to police.

A spokesperson for the trust said it was "committed to a safe, inclusive and respectful place to work and to provide care".

In total, the trust counted 3,295 violent, aggressive or verbally abusive incidents over the last three financial years, for which it said the triggers vary.

This number does not include the staff-on-staff incidents, of which there were 442 since 2022/23, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The hotspot areas include the emergency department at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

In approximately 50 per cent of incidents, the trust said, the attack perpetrator is recorded as having capacity, meaning they have the ability to use and understand information to make decisions.

A spokeperson for the trust said staff were encouraged to report all incidents of violence and aggression so that action can be taken.

Incidents are reviewed weekly by a behaviour standards panel, the spokesperson said.

The panel can issue behaviour warning letters, or conditional behaviour orders.

The trust is also trialling the use of activity coordinators to support vulnerable patients who are more likely to become agitated when visiting hospitals.