Ambulance staff in Scotland face daily assaults, with incidents rising by 11% last year, highlighting a troubling trend in public safety.
Glasgow: It’s pretty alarming to hear that ambulance crews in Scotland are getting assaulted almost every day. Last year, the numbers shot up by 11%, which is just unacceptable.
In total, there were 346 incidents reported in 2023/24. We’re talking about everything from spitting to actual physical attacks. It’s wild to think that people would act this way towards those trying to help.
Breaking it down, the West region saw 146 assaults, the East had 132, and the North reported 59. The verbal abuse really took the cake, increasing by 30% compared to the previous year.
One call handler, Declan Cowan, shared a pretty intense story. He was swamped with calls and had to tell a patient to reach out to their GP instead of sending an ambulance. The caller flipped out, hurling insults and even making threats. That’s just not right.
Michael Dickson, the Chief Executive of the Scottish Ambulance Service, made it clear that this kind of behavior is totally unacceptable. He emphasized that their staff should be able to do their jobs without fear of being attacked.
He also pointed out that the stress of emergency calls doesn’t justify abusing the people trying to help. It’s a tough job, and these assaults can really take a toll on the staff, sometimes even pushing them to leave the service.
They’re working with Police Scotland to tackle this issue and hold those responsible accountable. It’s about time we all show some respect to those who are out there saving lives.
