As the peak holiday season approaches, Ambulance Victoria (AV) has called on the community to help stop violence directed toward paramedics.
AV released a statement this week revealing an assault or attempted assault was reported by paramedics every 15 hours across Victoria.
Incidences of occupational violence increased 14 per cent in the last financial year, with 580 cases reported, 41 of those in the Barwon South West region.
From July to June this year that rate has increased, with 33 incidents reported in the region.
AV Drysdale and Swan Bay team manager Gen Clarke, who has been a paramedic for 13 years, mostly in the Geelong and Bellarine region, said the message from AV was “vitally important”.
“We’re seeing an increase in the reporting of occupational violence against paramedics,” Ms Clarke said.
“The message, particularly around Christmas, is we understand that this is a really stressful time for people, this is a season of heightened emotion for a lot of people, but we are not accepting that we are then the target of occupational violence.”
Barwon South West regional director Jessica McGowan said Ambulance Victoria had zero tolerance for threatening behaviour, abuse and assaults.
“We’ve seen horrific behaviour recently, including paramedics being spat on, hit with a closed fist, a patient punching a vehicle with the crew trapped inside and even had a random bystander hurl a hammer at an ambulance,” Ms McGowan said.
“We have zero tolerance for these disgusting and illegal acts, and we do not accept occupational violence as ‘part of the job’.
“We recognise emergency situations can be stressful but becoming angry or aggressive will not help you or the patient paramedics are trying to help.”
Injuring an emergency worker in Victoria is a category 1 offence and carries a mandatory minimum six-month jail sentence.
Ms Clarke said paramedics were there to help members of public but could not do their job if they didn’t feel safe.
“When (calling triple zero) you can tell the call-taker if there are aggressive people on the scene, or if it’s a public area, and we can get the police going as well,” she said.
