“You have no right to be kicked in the face, dragged on the ground, have your rights violated and be beaten until you lose control,” said Elisa, a child psychiatry officer.
According to her testimony, the attacks have not only been physical, but also reflect a worrying normalisation of violence in her work environment. “It is sad that it is already normalised. We are always expressing our complaints, but unfortunately the way the system works, the bosses keep changing and nothing happens.”
This weekend, the child and adolescent mental health service at the Franco Ravera Hospital was involved in a series of violent incidents that included scratches, scrapes, hair pulling and other physical attacks on staff by patients who allegedly rioted by attacking the staff on duty. As a result, on Tuesday, the staff mobilized to present their case and demand answers from the authorities.
Abigail Cornejo, nurse and president of the Association of Nurses of the O’Higgins Region (ASENF) and National Director of FENASENF, pointed out that this problem is not exclusive to the aforementioned service. “This is a situation that does not only involve children’s mental health, but also the adult part and has to do with the multiple aggressions that officials have suffered from this type of patients, where unfortunately we have been exposed to a shortage of protocols, where we have not had a response from higher entities on how to handle this situation. Giving a concrete approach to the officials, where the issue of mutuality has also failed, that the assaulted officials are not given the necessary number of days of leave, is not addressed properly.”
“THIS HAS BEEN INCREASING OVER TIME”
He explained that what happened over the weekend “was an attack that occurred by a specific group of patients, where the staff were overwhelmed at that moment. And this is where scratches, hair pulling, kicks, blows occurred.”
Cornejo stressed the lack of clear protocols and the absence of adequate support from the authorities, which has left officials exposed to a growing wave of violence. “It is a very complex issue that got out of hand with an attack that occurred over the weekend and we are asking for a response not only from this authority, but also from the Health Service. Many times there is a tendency to minimize the management or protection that should be given to the officials themselves,” noting that situations like these have been happening for a long time “but unfortunately this has been increasing over time.”
IN A STATE OF ALERT
Regarding the response from the authorities, the ASENF leader said, “We are dissatisfied, because this is not something we want to achieve in the short or medium term, so we have declared ourselves on alert, we will continue to raise the issue, this is not a minor issue and the O’Higgins Health Service also has to respond to what is happening.”
Words that were supported by Cintia Báez, president of FENAT Nacional of the Franco Ravera Hospital, “We are dissatisfied with the way this issue is being handled very lightly. We had a conflict in February with Adult Psychiatry, in which a table was formed with the Seremi of Justice, Health Service. We want a concrete response, we cannot continue waiting,” she emphasized, demanding immediate measures such as staff reinforcements and judicial support to guarantee the safety of the health team.
“I don’t see the regional minister of Justice here, we want Perfecto, the director of the O’Higgins Health Service. We want him to be here, for us to work together. We want to get something for our people.
We want concrete solutions now for the people, so that we can say that they will be able to work in peace. There are five people who have been attacked, we have to see what protocols we are going to put in place and staff reinforcements, we need technicians and nurses, more security, guards and judicial support, which is lacking at the moment.”
This is why the unions and officials they represent remain on alert, hoping that the authorities will take concrete measures to prevent future attacks and guarantee a safe environment for the performance of their work.
The fact is that many of the cases involve patients who are hospitalized by court order.
Franco Ravera Hospital takes legal action due to assaults
The management of the Regional Hospital acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and announced that complaints have been filed with the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the physical attacks and threats suffered by the staff.
“It is true that there is a mobilization due to the situation of aggression and threats against hospital staff by patients who have been prosecuted without criteria for clinical hospitalization. As a Hospital, we are taking the following measures: reporting to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for physical aggression and threats against staff by patients admitted through a judicial measure. Expediting these judicial processes and possible transfers to other specialized centers belonging to the Children’s Ombudsman’s Office,” said the director of the Regional Hospital, Alis Catalán.
The management also assured that legal and emotional support is being provided to the affected employees through the hospital’s Quality of Life Unit for emotional support.”
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