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Australia Dec 1 2014 Security guards are arming themselves with cameras to tackle violence and aggression at Footscray Hospital.
Western Health has credited the security cameras with a decrease in attacks by helping to deter potential offenders and capturing evidence if an incident unfolds.
Security services training and operations co-ordinator Trevor Lawson said many incidents had been successfully resolved since the guards began wearing the cameras on their shirts, because people understood their behaviour was being recorded.
He said the hospital had undergone a security review and had a designated, on-site training facility.
It comes as data reveals “code grey” alerts for aggressive and threatening behaviour are on track to decrease at the hospital.
There have been 755 incidents to October this year, compared with 1054 incidents last year.
Meanwhile, “code black”, serious threats, occurred six times in 2013, with five so far this year.
Neurosurgeon Dr Michael Wong is lucky to be alive after he was stabbed 14 times in the back, arms, hands, chest, legs, abdomen and head as he arrived for work at the hospital on February 18.
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Victorian secretary Lisa Fitzpatrick said the figures didn’t reflect the true magnitude of the problem as many nurses had given up reporting violence because nothing changed.
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