Northampton midwife attacked by egg-throwers in Coventry

Laney Holland was on her way to see one of the vulnerable pregnant women she is a midwife for when she was attacked

A midwife who had eggs, flour and water thrown at her by a group of 30 people said the experience would not stop her visiting patients.

Laney Holland, 47, from Northampton, was driving through Coventry when she was attacked.

She said: "It was scary. These people were probably clapping for me before, but now they were throwing stuff."

University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust said abuse of staff was "completely unacceptable".

Mrs Holland, who works for the Trust as a complex care midwife helping vulnerable pregnant women, was travelling to see a patient last week when the attack happened.

The attackers continued to pelt Laney Holland's car with objects after she put the roof up

As she drove her convertible Mercedes C-Class along Coventry's Hillmorton Road, she noticed a broken fire hydrant had spilled water over the road.

She spotted a group of children and adults and slowed down to avoid splashing them.

"They just came at me," she said. "I had the top down as it was so hot.

"A 12 or 13-year-old threw an egg and it hit me in the eye."

Mrs Holland said the egg dislodged one of her contact lenses, and as she struggled to see where she was going she was hit in the face by a bag of flour.

"There were a lot of adults," she said. "I said to one of them, 'I'm in uniform' but he said 'And?' and they all cheered."

She said the ordeal lasted about four minutes, but felt more like 40.

"I made it really clear I worked for the NHS, but they didn't care," she said.

"It was awful. I cried the whole journey home."

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Mrs Holland, who said other vehicles were also attacked, said: "I'm so passionate about my job. Some people said, 'Don't go to that area again,' but my women deserve good care.

"They don't deserve for it to be stopped because of these people."

The hospital trust said such incidents impact on staff's ability to deliver the best care for patients, adding "no-one should be made to feel unsafe when doing their job".

West Midlands Police said it was investigating.