Attack hospital staff and you will go to prison, warns Sheriff

Alexa Brown 1605 - 1605 • Last updated 29 Apr 2009 11:21 0 Comments

A local sheriff is leading a hospital booze blitz with a promise of prison.

Sheriff Kevin Drummond issued his warning yesterday (Tuesday) as he toured the A&E ward at Borders General Hospital.

The Selkirk sheriff, who has publicly slammed the region"s late-night booze culture, was promoting the Health Board"s zero tolerance approach to drunken violence against hospital staff.

Sheriff Drummond told the Border Telegraph: 'The zero tolerance policy means that no level of abuse is acceptable.

'Anybody engaging in abuse against medical staff is probably going to be arrested, detained in custody and, if found guilty, there is going to have to be a very good reason why they should not go to jail.

'The presumption is that there should be absolutely no abuse against medical staff.

'These are the people trying to help the people who are abusing them. It is intolerable.'

The Selkirk law-enforcer has already become a leading legal light in the fight against hospital yobs.

And his latest threat comes just weeks before Borderers celebrate their local summer festivals.

Thousands converge on the region"s towns throughout June and July for day-long drinking sessions, which often sees the local hospital inundated with additional drink-related casualties.

And staff are now being trained in how to deal with aggressive drunks.

Sheriff Drummond added: 'It is very sad to me that medical staff have to be trained in how to deal with violent patients.'

Nurses have praised the Sheriff for adopting the strict 'jail-"em' approach after seeing a sharp rise in alcohol-fuelled attacks at the hospital during the past year.

Sister Jackie Brand, who works in the Accident and Emergency ward, said: 'We are lucky with Sheriff Drummond to have someone who adopts this zero tolerance approach.

'We also encourage staff to report these incidents, because even if they think it is minor or unimportant, these situations can build up and seriously affect staff morale.'

Drink-fuelled violence has become a huge concern for the region.

Earlier this year, Sheriff Drummond estimated that around 80 per cent of the cases he dealt with over a three-month period were alcohol-related.

Drunken troublemakers can have a knock-on effect on the whole community, often pushing local medical and police resources to their limit.

Superintendent Doug Forsyth, of Lothian and Borders Police, said: 'I think the strength of this whole initiative is that it is a really strong partnership between police, medical staff and the courts.

'We are strong in how we deal with it, medical staff are strong, and the courts are strong.

'It is all about working together.'

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This article appeared in Border Telegraph 29 Apr 09

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