Pregnant woman lashes out at Queensland hospital staff demanding cigarette
The moment a young, pregnant mother lashed out at Queensland hospital staff while demanding a cigarette has been filmed on body cam.
It’s one of many horrific instances hospital staff endure on a daily basis, which include verbal, physical and sexual assaults.
In this instance filmed at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital the young patient is heard yelling:
"I need a cigarette… You have no idea what s**t I have been dealing with," as the cameras rolled.
An emergency department nurse asked, "Aren't you pregnant, 17 weeks?"
The young woman shot back, "Am I talking to you s**t? Am I f**king talking to you s**t? Am I? Did I say anything to you?"
The harrowing scenes captured on staff body cameras give a small glimpse at the physical and verbal abuse frontline hospital staff deal with.
In another instance a patient is handcuffed and held by two armed police officers.
The nurse should have been safe to do her job, but the patient she was trying to help punched her twice in the face with a closed fist.
Incredibly, the woman in her late 20s pulled her gloves on and kept working.
It's the size of a mobile phone and weighs less than a chocolate bar but doctors and nurses say the new body-worn cameras are making hospitals safer.
Because of repeat episodes like this, every security guard on the emergency room floor at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital now wears a camera – the same make as frontline police.
The cameras capture video and sound, and the countless insults and threats of violence hurled at nurses – many of them sexual.
Dr David Rosengren said the attacks weigh on staff.
"It does tend to cause significant impact on staff, their confidence and anxiety," he said.
In an Australian first, a trial has begun on the Sunshine Coast where security guards will act as concierge to share food and information with patients.
Health Minister Cameron Dick said the project would be about engagement and communication before confrontation.
"They'll be explaining why there may be a wait. They'll be telling them there might be a seriously injured Queenslander being treated," he said.
Newsbreak – March 14
