“It’s about listening, thinking, and then acting”
As part of our new campaign to help reduce violence and aggression and keep our hospitals safe, we are encouraging everyone to take a moment and think about what others may be going through.
Mal’s story
Emergency department assistant, Newham Hospital
“I mainly feel safe at work, but patients and visitors do take their stress out on me sometimes.
I understand what they are going through. For me, dealing with violence or aggression is about listening, thinking, and then acting and to have a plan in your head to help this person.
Once, an elderly lady I was helping with in the emergency department was worried about her house and wanted to go home. She ended up heading to the bus stop, so I followed her. She was confused and stressed and acted out against me. She slapped my arm to get out of the way but in my mind, I knew she needed help because she wasn’t well. At that point I didn’t react, and I called security for support. It was a busy day shift, but you must concentrate on the patient. Security and I worked together to really listen to her and understand her concerns, and as a result we were able to get her back into the hospital for treatment.
Some people don’t have the knowledge of what’s going on in the hospital. If the patients could see what was going on inside the hospital and the work we are doing, I think they would act differently. We prioritise the most urgent patients but not everyone sees it like that. The doctors might be looking at a cardiac arrest or stabbing that is life or death and needs their attention quickly.
I feel lucky to be part of a really good team that helps each other. If you need to talk about it, you know there is somewhere to go.
My ask for patients and visitors is to take the extra thought before you act. We are working hard, and everyone is just doing their job. To my colleagues - once you get to know the patient you get to know when and why they are acting that way. After all they might be scared, or missing home.”