In most cases these patients are not mentally competent so how do they deal with that in Florida?
Florida actually has laws that are designed for those who are not mentally comptent. The is one called "the Baker Act" they have to go to a mental health facility and be diagnosed it cannot be assumed and yes they are going in handcuffs. This is also can apply to suicide attempts.
There is also one called the "Marchman Act." This is used for people who appear to be high or smell drunk and are behaving in a manner that appears to be mentally incompetent. I am not meaning a person who is just seeking a high but a person who may be bi polar, or what have you and have an additional substance abuse problem on top of it.
In these cases the State Attorneys Office decides whether battery charges against a healthcare worker or law enforcement officer will stand or be dropped. Many times law enforcment officers and the healthcare workers will drop the charges on those who are baker acted themselves. For those gray areas the SAO decides the outcome since they are the law of the land here and thats that.
Also remember cops won't arrest anyone at a hospital unless a hospital worker calls them. It is also the workers call if they choose to press charges or not. There is something here called a waiver of prosecution. That is when the police are called but perhaps the person who called has a change of heart and doesn't want to press charges after all. It is not the same as a false police report since the situation was real but the outcome was different then was expected at the time the 911 call went in.
It doesn't mean the person is automatically going to the pokey the person is question will be brought to a facility that has a mental health unit. If they are already deemed mentally ill by the hospital to begin with then the police aren't usually called in and the hospital deals with it.
There are also times when an officer may be unsure during an arrest if the person is mentally ill, high or both. In those cases the police bring the person to the hospital first for an evaluation. Once they are in the jail it is too hard to get them help of any kind so it is better for the arresting officer and the hospitals to decide that prior to charges being filed and the person ending up in the system with guards who are often times more jaded then the officers who work the roads.
Yes! It's about freekin' time the public figured out that paramedics, orderlies, nurses, techs, and docs are somehow "open season" for venting their insanity on. :angryfire:nono:
Yes! It's about freekin' time the public figured out that paramedics, orderlies, nurses, techs, and docs are somehow "open season" for venting their insanity on. :angryfire:nono:
Oops! I completely worded this wrong. I was thinking two different things as I was typing it. I should have said "the public figured out that paramedics, orderlies, nurses, techs, and docs are NOT "open season" for venting their insanity on.
Oops! I completely worded this wrong. I was thinking two different things as I was typing it. I should have said "the public figured out that paramedics, orderlies, nurses, techs, and docs are NOT "open season" for venting their insanity on.
In a sick way you were right the first time. The public (general blanket statement here hahah) does seem to think "caretakers" are open season.
By making it a felony offense and enforcing it will change that attitude. No one should be abused and have to just "deal with it."
Specializes in Paediatrics, Orthopeodics, ENT, General.
Do you think as an Austrailian that this is a cultural thing? What I mean by that is I am American and I perceive Aussies as very tough, witty, and intelligent. I am just wonder if it is cultural that Aussies see themselves as wussies if they don't take the punch and "roll with it" so to speak.
That being said I think it's time that Aussies should take some legislative action and get some laws and mindsets changed. No deserves to be hit. As for signifcant injury some things that don't look bad at the time turn into life long nightmares. Sorta like boxers, it didn't look bad back in the day but look at poor Mohammad Ali now. Or look at American football players sometimes one good tackle is all it takes to destroy a career. I don't see why nurses anywheres should have to put up with any more then any other career choice.
Thankyou so much for your response, and the compliment to Aussies!! To some extent I think it is a cultural thing in Australia, that you 'grit your teeth and put up with it'. Nurses are often seen as fair game for sexual comments and innuendos, and abuse. I cannot count the times I have been abused verbally (no doubt common in USA too) and verbal abuse can be almost as damaging as physical. It was only 8 years ago that a security grille was installed in casualty in our hospital. We are a large regional facility, the only referral hospital for several hundred kilometers. The security grille was finally installed after a nurse was held up for 2 hours with a blood-filled syringe while her colleagues dealt with a code. She sat and tried to talk down her attacker for this time, unable to call for help. She has needed extensive counselling for post traumatic stress disorder, and has since left nursing.
I would be interested to hear what other Australian nurses think about this topic.
In a perfect world we wouldn't have to ask this question.
The answer isn't as simple as yes, no, or undecided if the assaulting person is a patient under the influence of mind altering substances, experiencing acute delirium, dementia disorders, acute brain traumas, acute mental illness exacerbation, or any number of disease processes or injuries (cancer metastasis to the brain, for example) that interfere with their cognition and behavior.
If the assault is not associated with an acute mind altering illness or injury, if it involves individuals who are not the patient, :angryfire it becomes a legal matter. As nurses, we need to care for people, even when they can't understand we're acting in our helping role.
Specializes in Respiratory, Hospice, Med-Surg, MICU,.
Absolutely! I was violently assaulted on a home health case by the father of the vent child I was caring for. I had ptsd after, believed I was going to die during the assault. I was strangled, battered, picked up and thrown through the air. I closed my eyes when I bathed for well over 6 weeks as I couldn't bear to see the bruises.
He plea bargained, received 18 months probation (has LOOOONG history of assault through many years including jail time I later learned). He continues to work in his state job high in the ranks. Pitiful.
The agency I worked for? I received No support from them. They knew of his history and afterwards demanded their nurses go back in the home and accompany him with the child b/c "after all, you are professionals" written in the letter they mailed to all nurses working that case. So, in addition to the individuals being charged with a felony, so should any business or employer that knowingly puts their employees at risk. I learned afterwards the first agency to work with this family after the child was born, dropped them b/c "the safety of their nurses was not guranteed". However, this was a guaranteed 24/7 need and the dollar spoke louder to the agency.
Where do I sign on for this one?! NO ONE should be compromised.....ever. Do Not accept that you are liable for your being assaulted. BS. Do you know, when the police arrived, I was still in the house with this man, and they would not Even come in until more back up arrived. And we are to "handle it" on our own? lol Yeah, right! A neighbor man came in when he heard the commotion and tried to reason with the man who did the assaulting, and he was picked up by his throat and held against the wall with his feet off of the floor.
If you are injured, you are dropped like a hot potatoe. No employer cares what happens to the rest of your life, only YOU can prevent your injury by not allowing yourself to be set up by your employer. This goes for mental illness as well.
God Speed to each nurse, and may another one Never be injured again.....My Dream! Idealistic, but still my Dream.
I don't agree that someone who pushes a physician should be charged with a felony while someone that punches a convenience store clerk in the face should be given a fine and sent home that wil probably get the charge expunged in a year if they have a clean record
The punishment should fit the degree of the offense...regardless of what the victim does for a living.
of mind altering substances, experiencing acute delirium, dementia disorders, acute brain traumas, acute mental illness exacerbation, or any number of disease processes or injuries 
(cancer metastasis to the brain, for example) that interfere with their cognition and behavior. 
UM Review RN, ASN, RN
1 Article; 5,163 Posts
I would not press charges against someone who is not mentally competent.