Alarm grows at rise in violence in hospitals

[webfact]

Alarm grows at rise in violence in hospitals

By Poungchompoo Prasert 
The Nation

 

file photo

 

Public health ministry plans to take stringent measures to boost security

 

VIOLENCE in state hospitals increased in the past seven years, with 51 incidents causing a total of 10 deaths and leaving 56 injured, the Public Health Ministry’s permanent secretary, Dr Sukhum Kanchanapimai, said yesterday. 

 

Among proposed solutions to boost security are a review of emergency wards’ layouts, double doors with controlled access, additional CCTV cameras and the Bt2 million-per-head life insurance coverage for medical personnel at the emergency wards, he tol a seminar yesterday. 

 

Sukhum said 51 violent incidents had taken place at state hospitals between 2012 and 2019. There were 18 brawls, 19 attacks on medical personnel, one case of property-damage, one instance of causing disturbance, six suicideS and six other cases. Such incidents had led to three deaths and 13 injuries among medical personnel and seven deaths and 43 injuries among members of the public, he said. 

 

The number of incidents have increased over the years from one case in 2012, none in 2013, one in 2014, seven in 2015, four in 2016, 10 in 2017, 17 in 2018 and 11 in the first four months of 2019, he added.

 

Current security measures at emergency wards includes having guards on duty, alarms for personnel to call for help, safety drills and some self-defence training, but more measures will be added, Sukhum said. 

 

The Design and Construction Division of the Department of Health Service Support was told to review the emergency ward layout plans to ensure at least two entrances with strong doors that can be locked and equipped with a key card access system, as well as to find the right position for CCTV cameras in and around emergency wards, he said. 

 

The ministry is also considering buying life insurance for medical staff at the emergency wards for compensation of Bt2 million per head, he said.

 

Assistant to the Medical Council of Thailand’s secretary-general, Passakorn Wanchaijiraboon, told the same seminar that the council had conducted a survey of security at emergency wards for 1,726 medical personnel (over half of whom were female nurses in their 20s) from April 20-30.

 

Around 51.5 per cent of the respondents said they had encountered some form of violence one to three times on average every year. It also noted that community hospitals had witnessed the most incidents – four to six per year – while hospitals under the police or Army care witnessed one to three incidents per year.

 

Around 48.4 per cent of the incidents had led to normal injuries, while 26.9 per cent had resulted in organ loss or even death, the respondents said. At 96 per cent of the cases cited, inebriation was the main factor, and 97.2 per cent of the respondents said would welcome a ban on drunken persons entering emergency wards. The survey found that 54.9 per cent saw the risk of violence as contributing significantly to medical personnel resigning.

 

Deputy spokesman of the Office of the Attorney-General, Kosolwat Inthuchanyong, said intrusion of a hospital’s emergency ward was punishable with 3-15 years imprisonment, especially intrusion to assault a patient receiving treatment, which could also be tried as attempted murder. Intrusion of a hospital’s emergency ward is also liable to a civil lawsuit for damages, he said. 

 

Currently, court trials are ongoing in relation to four cases of alleged intrusion of a hospital’s emergency ward. An unknown number of similar cases are under consideration of the public prosecutor for indictment, he added.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30369010

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-05-08

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[bluesofa]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Among proposed solutions to boost security are a review of emergency wards’ layouts, double doors with controlled access, additional CCTV cameras and the Bt2 million-per-head life insurance coverage for medical personnel at the emergency wards, he tol a seminar yesterday. 

Surely the answer is for armed security staff, with instructions to shoot the hooligans in the legs to stop them.

The hospital could then also charge a premium for admitting them as patients and removing the bullets. A win-win situation.

[Lingba]

Given the fact that these idiots are putting already other fragile individuals at risk for further injury if not death...They should be charged with attempted manslaughter or manslaughter and punished/jailed accordingly no questions asked...What a bunch of selfish stinking trash

[cardinalblue]

Security and security measures are absolutely non existent in the one large gov hospital in CM that I visited recently....the waiting areas for the ER are outside and rooms and entries are   Everywhere...

 

would need a whole new design to control people flow with a single entry...

 

i dont see it happening....culture just too lax and doesn't view money as an investment (vs cost) to respond accordingly 

[Borzandy]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

VIOLENCE in state hospitals increased in the past seven years, with 51 incidents causing a total of 10 deaths and leaving 56 injured

Thailand number 1.

[soalbundy]

What a strange world we live in, slaughter in schools and places of worship and now hospitals. I read that in the early 1900's it was standard practice at large football matches to have ONE mounted policeman on duty, not because they expected trouble but just to reassure the crowds, now we need a brigade.

[legend49]

Now what race would be causing the violence??

[hobz]

15 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

What a strange world we live in, slaughter in schools and places of worship and now hospitals. I read that in the early 1900's it was standard practice at large football matches to have ONE mounted policeman on duty, not because they expected trouble but just to reassure the crowds, now we need a brigade.

This is what they call climate change I think.

I wonder if there is correlation with relative poverty.

Human adult males tend to become violent and aggressive when put in a situation of relative poverty. (To compete for females.)

 

By relative poverty I mean inequality. 

Edited May 8, 2019 by hobz

[GreenerGrass]

Adds a whole new demention to kicking a man when he is down!!! Cowards is to high a reference to use on creatures that do this!

[lockyv7]

Just now, legend49 said:

Now what race would be causing the violence??

The Human Race

[stanleycoin]

It's just all part of the, biggest thug and bully wins, syndrome.

its how Thailand operates, tugs and bullies at the top and all the way down.

They win, every time. here,    and not much change ahead by the looks of it. 

A lawless place, Thailand is now days.  because no one cares.

 

 

 

[car720]

if they have no ethics in anything else then why would they have any ethics in a hospital or school or temple etc..  

[bhatmasterson]

22 minutes ago, legend49 said:

Now what race would be causing the violence??

What lockyv7 said!!

 

Edited May 8, 2019 by bhatmasterson

[stanleycoin]

1 hour ago, bluesofa said:

Surely the answer is for armed security staff, with instructions to shoot the hooligans in the legs to stop them.

The hospital could then also charge a premium for admitting them as patients and removing the bullets. A win-win situation.

I see you made a typo, i fixed it for you. 

see below. 

 

Surely the answer is for armed security staff, with instructions to shoot the hooligans in the head to stop them. 

 

[mikebell]

Instead of redesigning hospital entrances, why don't they just get a police force?

[LawrenceN]

1 hour ago, GreenerGrass said:

Adds a whole new demention to kicking a man when he is down!!! Cowards is to high a reference to use on creatures that do this!

I don't mean to go all grammar police on you, but do you misspell dimension, or did you mean to coin a new word referring to dementia? If the latter, very clever!

[DogsBarkingAllDay]

Spends a budget employ security personnel. Install those metal device machine like airport with ID and face scanning computerised registration /fingerprint registering.  Spends this cost for long term benefits.

These attackers may indirectly hurt other innocent public as well.

Visitors controlling also helps better functioning the hospital regulation.

[spidermike007]

As is the case with so many other areas of society, the answer is a deterrent. Everyone knows the police are so weak and incompetent, the judiciary so anemic, that the chances of getting away with a violent crime here, are very high. So, people do as they please, without fear of repercussions. The answer is to change that. How the changes would take place, is the big challenge. First a foremost, there has to be a desire to change and improve society and the country. Not just lip service, as we have gotten from the army for the past 61 months. They are largely to blame, for alot of societies current woes. Incompetence on a grand scale, leads to a meltdown in the culture.

[hotchilli]

Mostly fueled by alcohol... patients are taken to the nearest hospital from both fighting parties

once at the hospital the "friends & relatives" arrive & continue the argument!

Hospitals should have a hot-line to the police station.. any sign of trouble get them in.

[Road Warrior]

I agree 100% lingba as quoted above ,just animal's.

[high plane drifter]

Thailand has changed so much,, used to be safe ,but now  you can be in dangerest situation when you least expect it...

[TMNH]

Besides the fact that Thai males have no "stop" function in their usual repertoire of impulsiveness, "when" these punks can't even figure out that they are in a hospital environment, then ....as usual, it goes back to a lack of "untaught" basics...respect in certain situations AND if they or any Thais for that matter can't figure out a  "simple" way to act, then they simply have not been brought up properly. Do I need to explain further? To say that Thai men have a lack of "reasonable" response is an understatement. So much for the Buddhist whatever. Pathetic. No one can tell you what is right- even if your parents say so. When you ignore "right" and kick the shit (with 6 of your friends) out of someone, not only are Thai males (not in general) who do such "wimps", but it exemplifies why Thai women "attempt" to get the <deleted> away from your whatever. If I were a Thai woman, I would stay clear from the psychotic males who failed to gather any emotional  and reasonable "talking".

 

And that seems to be a rare opportunity... Each must decide. All I can say is that each has his/her expectations. When I innocently lend my comments- albeit aware of Thai this and that, I still understand that difference in cultures sometime need to be talked about. Whatever...each day I always do my best, yet think of others. I am without any words...all I know is that I am quite well and cognizant of "stuff" around me.

[malagateddy]

Hot line to police ststions AND army units if close by.
Also 10 years MANDATORY jail sentence

Sent from my SM-G7102 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[elgenon]

You want Thai security guys shooting in hospitals? What could possibly go wrong?

If they were able to hit the intended target, what would happen if a Thai attacked a farang?

[stanleycoin]

Just now, elgenon said:

You want Thai security guys shooting in hospitals? What could possibly go wrong?

If they were able to hit the intended target, what would happen if a Thai attacked a farang?

Not much as they ( police man )  have done this in a shopping mall a few months back

[elgenon]

I was wondering who they would shoot at if they shot at someone.

[TMNH]

Control your <deleted> impulses and if not, then your "women" will look elsewhere- as I would do in that same situation. "if" you can out figure out that you do NOT have a brawl outside of a hospital, then you are beyond repair. And for me to talk "logically" would be an insult to me at first. Anyone who brazenly thinks that they are above any any law OR a reasonable stance with whatever, then all I can say is step back. Those simple instructions are without any understanding. And you wonder why your peers(women ) even want to even talk? Whatever...Focus upon whether fellow thai women even have any semblance to even understand your whatever.

 

I live in the US...and you live elsewhere- therefore your call....your hopefully-directed whatever. And hence, I grow tired of your whatever this and that. And as such....you or anyone else is perhaps a way out.

[bluesofa]

9 minutes ago, elgenon said:

You want Thai security guys shooting in hospitals? What could possibly go wrong?

If they were able to hit the intended target, what would happen if a Thai attacked a farang?

Try googling 'sense of humour failure' or 'full frontal lobotomy'.

[PatOngo]

41 minutes ago, Road Warrior said:

I agree 100% lingba as quoted above, just animal's.

Can't say I've ever seen animals fighting in a hospital, they are too cultured to do that!

[elgenon]

12 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

Try googling 'sense of humour failure' or 'full frontal lobotomy'.

Do you remember the song "I'd rather have a bottle in front of me that have to have a frontal lobotomy"? Love that song.