An independent report into an attack on Hutt Hospital staff in 2018 has blamed poor communication, a confusing alarm system and no security guards or cameras in the emergency department.
The Hutt hospital. Photo: RNZ
Four nurses were left with moderate injuries, including concussions, after being attacked by a patient brought in by police on Boxing Day.
The patient had been waiting in the whanau room of the triage section when they became so angry that they threw a table at one nurse and punched three others.
They were restrained and wrestled to the floor before being taken to police cells.
According to the report, released by the hospital today, staff didn't know how to respond to violent incidents - and due to the duress alarm system sounding like the medical emergency alarm, some of them ran towards the danger.
The report recommended the hospital reviewed its health and safety systems, developed an adverse event management procedure and considered its staff researching over the holiday period.
It said security staff should be positioned in the emergency department, in clearly identifiable uniform, along with security cameras that were actively monitored and a duress alarm system with a different sound.
Hutt Valley District Health Board said it accepted the report's findings and had made changes based on the report's recommendations.
It had installed more security cameras, given staff more violent incident training, fixed emergency department furniture to the floor and changed the alarm sounds, as well as adding mental health nurse liaison and support worker roles to cope with busy times.
The DHB also acknowledged a long delay between when it received the report in March 2019 and when released it publicly today.
Its spokesperson, Joy Farley, said some staff viewed a summary report last year but more recently indicated they wanted to see the full report.
"Preparing the full report for a wider release involved a process that included redacting sections to protect the identities and privacy of the staff involved, seeking legal advice to ensure measures to protect staff privacy were adequate, and consulting with the affected staff to ensure they were comfortable with the report being released," she said.
"We recognise, however, that we took too long to complete this process and those learnings will inform future releases of information when requested by staff."