When patients attack

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Have you ever been attacked by a patient? I'd like to hear your story and how you reacted...

Specializes in Emergency Room/corrections.

yep. I have been spit at, hit, kicked, punched, pinched, you name it. Finally the ENA is lobbying for stronger laws regarding assaulting medical staff members.

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Specializes in Trauma, Tele, Neuro, Med-Surg.
I have always wondered, in situations like this what is an appropriate response? Are you still okay legally if you fight back? I don't know if self-defense counts if it is a patient under your care.

I've wondered that, too. There seems to be agreement that if you are being seriously threatened with injury to life or limb, you can react with force to protect yourself, but I've never heard of it spelled out in any hospital policy, and who defines "serious"?

I *do* have prior training that gives me the skills to do serious harm to an attacker. I would have NO doubts about when it would be appropriate to employ those skills if I am on the street or at home, and I feel the law would protect me. I'm less sure what is acceptable in the hospital. I'm sure if the patient put their hands around my throat, admin and the law would support me if I took any and all measures to save my life...but I'm less sure what is "acceptable" if they just threw a punch at my face...and there's alot of grey in between.

We have wrestled many patients into a bed for restraint and treatment, and while I've never been hurt, I am small, and I often feel like I'm expected to engage in a fight with one hand tied behind my back. I'm supposed to tackle this person, but not hurt them. I'm supposed to be in their face, sticking them with needles they don't want or understand, and manage to keep them from fighting back *without* causing them any harm (after all, that would be assualting the poor soul). Our security can't act until the patient physically threatens us, which means we have to try to manhandle them first and have them take a swing before security steps in. I understand I can't just punch the patient who's drunk and resisting a blood draw, but then I think the hospital should not be asking me to do any of the restraining!

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Yes, was hit in the face and spit on.

Had the drunk arrested, I pressed charges, went to court and he got 120 days in county jail.

And...in IL its a felony.

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Yes, was hit in the face and spit on.

Had the drunk arrested, I pressed charges, went to court and he got 120 days in county jail.

And...in IL its a felony.

wow glad to hear, so sorry that happened to you. If you don't mind me asking, were your able to keep your cool while that all happened or did it mess with your head a little? Also, did your co-workers help?

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Specializes in being a Credible Source.
Yes, was hit in the face and spit on.

Had the drunk arrested, I pressed charges, went to court and he got 120 days in county jail.

And...in IL its a felony.

120 days in the county joint for a felony? Doesn't sound right. Felonies take 'em straight to the big house for 2-5.

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Several times. Worst was a drunk female as we were trying to restrain her, just took aim and gave me a face full of foot. No broken bones, no uglier than before. Tried to file charges, cops blew it off.

HOWEVER, if she had done that to the cops, they would have thrown every book they had at her, as well as at least ONE sick day for "trauma".

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I've wondered that, too. There seems to be agreement that if you are being seriously threatened with injury to life or limb, you can react with force to protect yourself, but I've never heard of it spelled out in any hospital policy, and who defines "serious"?

I *do* have prior training that gives me the skills to do serious harm to an attacker. I would have NO doubts about when it would be appropriate to employ those skills if I am on the street or at home, and I feel the law would protect me. I'm less sure what is acceptable in the hospital. I'm sure if the patient put their hands around my throat, admin and the law would support me if I took any and all measures to save my life...but I'm less sure what is "acceptable" if they just threw a punch at my face...and there's alot of grey in between.

We have wrestled many patients into a bed for restraint and treatment, and while I've never been hurt, I am small, and I often feel like I'm expected to engage in a fight with one hand tied behind my back. I'm supposed to tackle this person, but not hurt them. I'm supposed to be in their face, sticking them with needles they don't want or understand, and manage to keep them from fighting back *without* causing them any harm (after all, that would be assualting the poor soul). Our security can't act until the patient physically threatens us, which means we have to try to manhandle them first and have them take a swing before security steps in. I understand I can't just punch the patient who's drunk and resisting a blood draw, but then I think the hospital should not be asking me to do any of the restraining!

I would think that the "rule" is to try to manipulate the person as best one can; and of course we cannot force anyone into a treatment they don't want. We ALL have the right to protect ourselves against violent or inappropriate pts who threaten or act upon us with physical harm. Being a patient in a health care setting does not give a pass to physically abuse heath care team members.

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Specializes in Trauma, Tele, Neuro, Med-Surg.
... and of course we cannot force anyone into a treatment they don't want....

Actually, in the ER, we often force people into treatments they don't want. Saw this many times on the neuro floor, too. If you are suicidal, for example, you are not given the choice to refuse a lavage if the doctor declares (1) you are trying to hurt yourself and (2) you need one as part of your medical care. For many patients, declining care or leaving AMA is not an option.

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Specializes in Emergency.

Aside from the senile geriatrics and the pts with elevated ammonia who both spit, scratch, grab etc, I've been shoved across the room by a young healthy man who was 6' 4" who wanted to leave because it was time for his cocaine fix. I've been punched in the face and kicked multiple times in the head by a young girl in an acute psychotic state without warning because the clock said something ugly to her, I guess. She was talking to the clock and I guess the conversation didn't go well because she was mad! I've had full grown drunk man with extremely poor hygiene and the remaining teeth in his head were various shades of yellow and brown spit in my face when I told him to stop screaming racial slurrs down the hall in my hospital who's pt population is mainly black. Then of course the psych pt who doesn't take her meds, despite my taxes paying for them, come in and verbally abuse me for two hours as the resident refuses to chemically sedate her, eventually grab me by my hair and repeatedly scratch me in the face with her filthy, unwashed claw/hand. The only pt I don't mind having assault me are the confused geriatrics. The rest of them either choose to stop their meds, abuse alcohol, abuse drugs, etc and put themselves in the situation to have this illness that results in their assaulting me. The worst is when the family shows up and acts like they don't care that their family member assaults people with educations and jobs who are trying to help their behinds that have never done anything to contribute to society. I guarantee that if the people who make the rules regarding restraint usage and documentation got assaulted as much as we do, things would be different. It's ok to be injured as a health care worker but not to be restrained as a mentally unstable pt? They got it twisted. On average I have a major assault about every six months. Don't get paid enough!

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.
On average I have a major assault about every six months. Don't get paid enough!

What is your response to being assaulted every 6 months?

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But don't you think that sometimes your smallness actually works to your advantage? Most people don't want to punch kids, right?

Oh how wrong you are. I have been kicked at, punched, pinched, bitten, spit at..name it and I've probably had it done. You'd be surprised how many will go at a smaller person before they go at a bigger one. It seems sometimes these people will attack someone much smaller and who "appears" more vulnerable before they will go at someone "their own size" I've had residents coming at me with windmill like arms only to calm down the second a "normal" sized person intervenes.

As an EMT I had a doped up very LARGE man kicking and swinging at me. My partner, also a very large man, yelled "i promise you, if you take one more swing at her..you'll have me swinging at you..feeling lucky today my friend?!" His hands went down, legs stopped kicking and he was the model patient all the rest of the ride.

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Specializes in Emergency.
What is your response to being assaulted every 6 months?

Ummm? Well, clearly it's a cause for celebration. Usually I throw a big party and tell the story repeatedly over dinner? What do you mean???? :confused:

File a report, press charges, see employee health as needed....and scrub down with cavi wipes head to toe.

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