A nurse is recovering at home after she was violently assaulted by a person she was not treating while working at Vancouver General Hospital.
Vancouver Coastal Health confirmed it is aware of the March 13 incident.
Adriane Gear, the president of the BC Nurses’ Union, said the nurse was “strangled to the point of unconsciousness and her body was dragged by her colleagues into the nursing station.”
Gear explained how the suspect was not even the nurse’s patient and she was completely caught off guard. A person in the area tried to intervene and they too were assaulted.
“It’s a horrific incident,” said Gear.
VCH confirmed a health-care provider and another patient were assaulted by a patient.
"The staff member is recovering at home, while the patient who was assaulted was treated at the hospital,” said a Vancouver Coastal Health spokesperson.
Vancouver police were not called to the hospital when the incident took place.
Sgt. Steve Addison said it was reported to VPD three days later, on March 16.
Police are now investigating and the suspect has been identified.
"Charges have not yet been laid because we’re still gathering evidence,” said Addison.
Nurses who were working that shift had expressed concern about the patient and their past violence, according to the union.
"They didn’t feel that the unit he was being placed in was appropriate,” said Gear. “They were concerned about managing the violence risk an there was no action taken by the employer.”
Gear is confused why the incident was not reported to police immediately.
“Is it on the nurse to actually call Vancouver police? I think in a situation like that, the employer should have,” she said.
VCH said it regularly reviews its practices and incidents to help ensure "the best approaches to keep staff and patients safe.”
“The safety of patients and staff at all VCH facilities is a top priority and any form of violence is not tolerated,” said the health authority in a statement.
Gear raised concerns about the frequency and severity of the violence taking place.
“We’ve gone from about 26 serious claims to about 46,” she said. “And, any given time, we are between 5,000 to 6,000 nurses short. That’s how many vacancies we have in the province.”
Nurses are facing not only physical injuries but also lasting psychological trauma, Gear added.
“We can't afford to lose any nurses from the system.”
