Northern Trust urges public to respect staff
With Emergency Departments becoming increasingly busy and wider health services continuing to face significant strain, the public are being reminded to treat all HSC staff with respect and understanding.
Sara Smyth, a clinical sister in Antrim Area Hospital Emergency Department, said: “While the vast majority of patients using health services are respectful and appreciative towards staff, there is a worrying increase in abusive behaviour. In fact, the number of attacks on staff has increased in recent years.”
Figures for the past five years show that were more than 6,000 attacks on Northern Health and Social Care Trust staff.
Ms Smyth, continued: “We recognise that some of our patients have complex health needs, and we understand that this can sometimes affect how they communicate or behave.
“But many of the incidents we experience aren’t because of that. A lot of the time it is just unacceptable behaviour, especially at this time of year.”
Reflecting on the high numbers of patients attending both Antrim Area Hospital and Causeway Hospital Emergency Departments, leading to longer wait times. Ms Smyth, said: “We know that people can become frustrated when they’ve been waiting a long time, we unfortunately see it almost every day.
“However, when people are abusive or aggressive, it doesn’t just impact us. It means we often have to step away from what we’re doing and sometimes call on another colleague for extra support. All of that makes the wait even longer for every single patient.
“We want to look after people, that’s why we’re here, but we need the public’s support to do that. The last thing any of our staff need is abuse.
“Our staff are dedicated professionals who come to work each day to care for our community. We are asking the public to support and show respect to our teams so they can focus on delivering the best possible care, especially when services are under pressure.”
The Northern Trust has been trialling the use of body-worn cameras at Antrim Area Hospital Emergency Department since September. The trial is aimed at reducing incidences of violence and aggression towards healthcare staff, and enhancing safety for patients. Initial indications suggest that the trial has had positive outcomes for both staff and patients.
Notes to editors:
- The number of incidents of violence (physical attacks) against healthcare staff in NHSCT in previous five years:
- 2020/2021: 1,082
- 2021/2022: 1,169
- 2022/2023: 1,081
- 2023/2024: 1,334
- 2024/2025: 1,560
Total: 6,226
19th December 2025
