[brian]

ALBANY -- Mercy Jaiswal, a registered nurse at Syosset Hospital on Long Island, has been assaulted and physically injured three times in the past seven years -- all while she was on the job.

In 2001, an enraged male client beat her with hot pots of coffee. In 2006, she was attacked and injured after asking a patient to get off the phone. Last July, she was "thrown around like a rag doll" by a 6-foot-3-inch, 360-pound client. The psychiatric nurse's arm was fractured and multiple pieces of hardware were inserted into her arm during surgery. She spent six months recovering, then returned to work.

After much thought and debate, she and four colleagues who were injured when they tried to stop the attacker pressed charges, said Jaiswal, a nurse for about 40 years. But under current law, assaulting and physically injuring a registered nurse or licensed practical nurse on duty is a misdemeanor. She and other members of the state Nurses Association would like to bump that up to a class C felony, just as it is for police officers, peace officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians.

"I am here to say I am healing, although the physical scars are visible and haunting me on a daily basis, and the financial and emotional stress for my family and myself have been overwhelming at times," Jaiswal said, adding that the client went on to injure seven correction officers.

Read full story here:
http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pb...WS01/804080357

[oramar]

Mercy Jaiswal, you are my kind of nurse and my kind of woman.Thumbs up to you and your colleagues.

[TiredMD]

Originally Posted by brian

But under current law, assaulting and physically injuring a registered nurse or licensed practical nurse on duty is a misdemeanor.

This is total . . . I can't say what I'm thinking or I'm gonna get banned.

It is sickening that if you do this on the street to a stranger, you get charged with a half-dozen felonies, but if you do it to the person helping to heal you, it's on par with jaywalking.

I can't believe how stupid that law is.

[nurseaboveboard]

Three things: 1. TiredMD, I have many times thanked the folks here in my posts, but for the first time, I decided to try clicking the little thanks button that I had been avoiding for some reason. I thought it might involve me having to learn something new, and after my masters, I decided to take a sabatical of sorts from learning ANYTHING I didn't HAVE to learn, until I was DAMN GOOD AND READY, (but mostly because I'm old, and don't like change)! 2. Because your post spoke so "eloquently" if you will for so many of us disheartened by the assulted nurse and her co-worker's story, I was inspired to pick YOU my friend to actually try this thank you button on for the first time! 3. Since I can't go back and click the button for every poster I wanted to thank, I am issuing a HUGE BLANKET THANK YOU for all those folks who have inspired me, taught me, and made me laugh and cry! Maybe I will learn about the cute, animated smiley faces next, who knows.

[whoofers]

This article got me thingking about what would happen if the nurse was able to defend herself (or other nurses defended her) and severe injuries resulted in the patient. I could assume, at the least, that the nurse(s) involved would be prosecuted for a felony. Why then can't the attacker?

[Angie O'Plasty, RN]

Believe me, there is nothing worse than that blood-curdling hairsbreadth of a second as you realize that you cannot get out of the way of that patient's fist as it lands in your face.

Except, apparently, the law's seeming nonchalance about the incident. It's a misdemeanor in FL too.

[Michigan RN]

Originally Posted by whoofers

This article got me thingking about what would happen if the nurse was able to defend herself (or other nurses defended her) and severe injuries resulted in the patient. I could assume, at the least, that the nurse(s) involved would be prosecuted for a felony. Why then can't the attacker?

And on top of that, I'm sure they would want to take the RN's license away too! Has anyone been assaulted but a patient and pressed charges? What happened?

[casi]

Why is it considered acceptable to beat up on your nurse? I don't care if it's a psych patient or someone doped up on drugs nurses should still have some sort of protection.

I wonder what the injury rate for on the job physical assult compares between nurses and police officers.

[TheChair1]

Attacking an EMT will get you a felony ... but an RN a misdemeanor? .... wow...

[dexter99]

THIS IS SO TRUE! I'm also in NY , in a post surgical unit. We get post op w/psych history all the time. There were several instances where in I was attacked by a pt (though I was able to call someone). No injuries yet but there's always this BIG question "WHAT ABOUT OUR PROTECTION OUR SAFETY." We always prioritize pt safety but what about ours? I can just imagine your traumatic experience. Are you going back to psych nursing? I actually quit my job this week not only because of these type of pts. BUT the nurset ratio is getting worse...