The Rise of Assaults on Hospital Staff with Deborah Powell: 22nd of November, 2019

Between February 20, 2016, and February 20, 2019, Canterbury DHB saw 2,383 recorded physical assaults, 1450 verbal abuse incidents, and 380 psychological harm events. Overall that accounts for two physical assaults a day. Since these figures, the New Zealand Resident Doctors Association says they have seen a spike in assaults, and the concern is that many of them are not being reported. The National Secretary of the New Zealand Resident Doctors Association, Deborah Powell joined Laura Kvigstad to discuss what is happening within our hospitals to see such a rise in assaults.