Police phoned her and asked her not to pursue the complaint, the nurse said. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Police did actually end up charging a patient who assaulted a nurse in an Auckland mental health clinic, despite initially asking the nurse to withdraw her complaint.
The nurse was punched in the head, knocked out and dragged by her hair after asking a patient to hand over a vape five months ago.
The police phoned her and asked her not to pursue the complaint, she said.
She refused, saying she was very upset by the request and accusing police of not taking the assault seriously. She did not hear from them again, she said.
But the police have now revealed they did lay charges against a 24-year-old woman, who pleaded guilty to assault last month.
The nurse said two officers phoned her on Friday to update her on the case and to apologise for not keeping her informed.
A police spokesperson told RNZ it was sometimes complicated for officers to make a decision about whether to charge patients in mental health clinics because they had to weigh up whether they were competent to be charged.
Police were committed to responding to and assisting hospital staff when assaults were reported, they said.
However the Nurses Organisation union said it had heard from many mental health nurses who felt police did not take assaults seriously, saying that made them feel "expendable."