Covid-denying patients assaulting medical staff, nurse says

Senior nurse Nicki Credland said staff were "being assaulted by patients and relatives who don't believe that Covid exists"

Hospital staff are being assaulted and sworn at by Covid-denying patients and relatives, a senior nurse has said.

Nicki Credland, chair of the British Association of Critical Care Nurses, said the abuse was "insufferable" and had left workers traumatised.

The Hull-based nurse said the increasing number of cases involving the Omicron variant could be a "significant burden on the NHS".

She urged people to get vaccinated, have a booster jab and to wear masks.

Speaking to BBC Radio Humberside, Mrs Credland said medical staff were "being shouted and sworn at, they are being assaulted by patients and relatives who don't believe that Covid exists".

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Mrs Credland recalled a recent incident told to her a by a colleague working in an Intensive Care Unit about a man who wanted to visit a relative who was on a life support machine with Covid.

"The relative who wanted to visit had tested Covid-positive as well and was therefore not allowed to visit the hospital," she said.

"The abuse that he gave to the ICU staff because he wanted to come onto the unit and visit his relative was absolutely disgraceful.

"I absolutely understand that it is extremely difficult for families when their loved ones are on intensive care.

"It's very stressful, it's heartbreaking to watch, I don't dispute that for a second.

"But equally we have to protect everybody and, if you test Covid positive, I'm afraid you can't just say 'I don't believe it therefore it doesn't exist', it doesn't work like that."

Mrs Credland said she did not want to identify which hospitals were involved to protect patient confidentiality.

Mrs Credland described attacks on medical staff as "insufferable"

The latest government figures, show that more than 7,500 people are being treated in hospital for Covid across the UK.

Mrs Credland said "about 75% to 85% of patients" who needed ICU treatment were not vaccinated.

"I spoke to an ICU charge nurse who said that a young patient in their 30s was about to be intubated," she said.

"So put onto an artificial ventilator because of really low oxygen levels, difficulty breathing and was begging them, begging the staff to give them the vaccination because they weren't vaccinated, because they didn't believe Covid existed.

"That patient died two days later."