Over 1,500 Scottish Ambulance staff have faced assaults in five years, with Glasgow seeing the most incidents reported.
Glasgow: A new report shows over 1,500 ambulance staff in Scotland faced assaults recently. This includes both physical and verbal attacks.
Greater Glasgow and Clyde had the highest number of incidents, with 417 logged since 2020. The situation is alarming, as the UK ambulance services report rising violence against staff.
From 2020 to 2024, 1,527 staff experienced abuse, marking a five-year high. Most incidents were physical assaults, totaling 859, while 668 were verbal attacks.
In 2020, there were 261 reported incidents. By 2024, that number rose to 376, a 44% increase. Lothian and Lanarkshire also reported significant numbers of attacks.
Incidents included being spat at, punched, kicked, and even serious assaults with weapons. Last year alone, there were 141 verbal abuse cases and 140 physical attacks.
Additionally, 23 instances of threats were recorded, including threats with knives or bottles. There were also 22 cases of clinical assault and 13 sexual assault reports.
Eight aggravated assaults were noted, involving serious threats to life. Legal Expert solicitor Patrick Mallon expressed concern over these figures, emphasizing that no one should feel unsafe at work.
The Association of Ambulance Chief Executives reported over 11,800 incidents of violence against UK ambulance staff in just six months. This accounts for 61% of all reported incidents for the year.
They expect the total to exceed 20,000 incidents across all ambulance services. Anna Parry from AACE highlighted the ongoing risk ambulance staff face daily.
Since 2019, there have been 74 legal claims related to assaults on ambulance staff. Compensation payouts have totaled nearly £1 million, showing the serious impact of these incidents.
Legal Expert offers support for those affected by such assaults, with a 24-hour helpline available. They aim to raise awareness and promote change to protect staff in the future.
