I saw the ticket - it was from the police. The diagnosis was "Unknown" and the special instructions read "Man knocked out". That was it. Seems the poor old first crew on scene didn't decide to wait for police, which is sod's law because most of the time crews err on the side of caution and sit there for an hour until the police arrive only to find that the patient is a little old lady and the attacker is now six miles away. I really wish the police would give us a bit more information on their tickets. The injured crew member only had minor injuries, but he really shouldn't have got any injuries at all.

!OFF TOPIC!

Sorry to go off topic on you, but as you are here neenaw, im having great difficulties accessing your blog.

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****Firefox can't find the server at www.neenaw.co.uk.

just for info im using firefox 2.0 and kbuntu linux!

Sorry, no idea. It's working fine for me - I don't host it myself, so I don't know if there are any problems, but I haven't been told of any.

Works OK on my Firefox 2.0. It can be any one of many factors influencing this including the amount of traffic. In busy times I do get 404's occurring because the browser does not get the site within a certain time so assumes it's not there.

NeeNaw - can I suggest you get your facts right. The job from police was "Male on floor knocked out" and the crew did NOT jump in without waiting for police. They are a very experienced crew and know better than that. They were attempting to treat the patient, when the suspect came up to them. He was smartly dressed and they had no way of knowing that he was responsible for the patients condition. The police had given no indication that the situation was dangerous.

I saw the ticket as I was on duty that night (not on that desk), and I'm 99% sure it was as I wrote above. Apologies if I have misremembered it, but the difference between "male on floor knocked out" and "man knocked out" is pretty negligible anyway. As you said, the police had given no indication of a dangerous situation so the crew would not have been at fault if they had attended without waiting for police. In Control, we thought this must have been the case as if the police were on scene, they should have been restraining the patient and protecting the crew. My comment was not in any way a criticism of the crew involved. I'm sorry if it appeared otherwise.

Fair enough -what I meant was that the crew did not go steaming in gung-ho. As usual, it was crap from the police, and I am getting sick and tired of people blaming sector staff for crews getting assaulted, when - most of the time - we should not be going to calls that the police have originated. The police should be douing the job they are paid for, which includes going to drunk and disorderly, drunk and incapable, drunk on licensed premises, fight in progress, psychopath going ballistic etc - ALL criminal offences. An LAS crew is going to get killed one day, if the police keep abrogating their responsibilities. Just for info - I know the crew involved, and they are top guys. Not the sort who go looking for trouble, and I hope that the lunatic scrote responsible has every volume of the book thrown at him. But he won't.....

All the information that has appeared on the news suggests that the police had no idea at the time of the call that there was any danger, its worth remembering that they, like us are only as good as the information they receive. Clarely the crew were not at fault, but I think the Met deserve the same benefit of the doubt. Seems to me that this is just one of those freak incidents that are unpredictable and unavoidable.

DSO

Reading the article has made me really cross .

There is going to come a time when the Ambulance service is going to need a police escort on all their calls as it is getting too dangerous, either that or we are going to lose the service as no one is going to want to do the job.

I think you are all heros and do a wonderful job for which I thank you with all my heart. It is about time the government stopped pissing on you and started treating you the way you deserve, and at least double your wages!

It is a huge thanks to Tom and his blog that has opened my eyes to just how bad the job has got!

Far too many ambulance people have been hurt trying to help. It is very very sad

According to the latest it looks like someone with mental health issues going amok. These characters can have superhuman strength and stamina with no reasoning. A combination far more dangerous than any amount of alcohol fueled aggression. At least drunks lose aim when they swing a punch.

I must admit when I first heard the news report my immediate thoughts were for the guys from the LAS and hoped that you were not caught up in it. Glad to know you are not, and that the others not badly injured but it does seem that respect for you guys trying to do your job is no longer to be taken for granted and going the other way. Hope everyone involved recovers ok.

Vic

These 'characters' are also human and need compassion and fairness, (like Tom gives) and similarly to previous expressed sentiments, I wish all concerned good health and a speedy recovery.

Glenda

Thank you for that gentle comment, Glenda.

After a lengthy period of reasoning with the small, wiry young man of about 18 (with mental health problems) doing horizontal Tai Chi exercises on his grandmother's kitchen floor, we decided that a sectioning order would be needed, and handed the problem to the EMDC. Four large policemen (including an inspector) arrived; they too spent some time trying to talk to lad, also to no avail. The inspector then grasped him by the arm - and the boy levitated off the floor and treated us to a breathtaking 10-minute display of Kung Fu, spinning, and hissing, with his air-punches and kicks (deliberately) missing our faces by inches (while his granny murmured "It's so nice to see he's kept up the martial arts classes")

The display ceased, he bowed, we applauded; one of the constables went to take him by the arm, and this time the boy's blow was not intended to miss. Fortunately, the policeman was quick, and was unhurt. The inspector made a decision; the police discussed it, then the boy was swiftly brought down, handcuffed, and his feet secured. The difference in size between the lad and the police was an important factor; he ceased fighting as soon as he knew he was captured.

At A&E, the staff wanted the restraints removed; the police cautioned against it, but the staff insisted. This time, there were also two large male nurses to hand, but all six struggled to re-shackle him.

The consultant did some quick telephoning; the duty psychiatrist appeared, and some research and a few phone calls swiftly re-established the lad's abandoned medication regime. I believe that he is back, living in his own flat now.

Of course compassion and fairness are needed; however, the role of appropriate force should never be underestimated - in the patient's interests as much as in anyone else's!

Sensible commenting by both - good to read. I get sick and tired, as well as very upset and hurt, when the mainstream media refer to a "person with mental health issues" and more or less leave it at that.........it just feeds the stereotyping that all of us (I include myself here) with a "mental health issue" are dangerous to the public (oh and also to ourselves of course) and bang, there goes any sense of compassion - so thanks to both of you for a) writing compassionately about someone with evident problems which require, of course, treatment and b) not belittling or demonising the person referred to.

Of course, it's extremely tragic (as well as RARE!) for someone with mental health issues to get so far down the line that they kill someone else - but anyone involved in primary or secondary mental health care in the UK will confirm to you that they can only do so much with dwindling resources and when the system fails patients, others needlessly suffer. If the patient kills him or herself and no-one else, well, that's less of a headline grabber than "Schizo knifes pillar-of-community mother of three."...........

It's easier to be sympathetic to a diabetic who breaks out of their 9-5 job and goes rogue due to mismanaged meds/dietary regime resulting in low blood sugar than it is to be nice to someone who's been tormented by mental health issues and took some "time out" from their meds.

But this distinction is wrong.

People with mental health issues can be more defensive because they have had to live with, and integrate into their sense of self, the socially problematic parts - this does not make them somehow "worse" than the diabetic raving their head off.

It just means they have more on their plate to cope with, and that's all.

JMO

It's the rarity that I feel is important.

I remember after an incident reported in the news about a guy who had mental health problems running around with a sword, someone said to me "gosh, I wouldn't dare be in a room with someone who had mental health problems unless I had someone to protect me" and I just *gaped* at her. I would feel a lot safer in a psych ward than I would in some of the pubs she frequents. It is also my understanding that a large proportion of murders and assaults are committed by people with no mental health diagnosis...

IIRC most studies put it at somewhere between 5-10% for murders - that's people who were exhibiting mental health problems at the time of the offence, it doesn't necessarily mean that they were in contact with mental health services or had a diagnosis. in my experience (i work with people with mh problems who have committed offences) a lot of them either weren't on the radar of mh or social services, or the services didn't have the resources (or inclination, in some cases) to help them when they were at their lowest point.

also, people with mental health problems are 6 times more likely to be victims of violence than people without.

in conclusion then, IMO it's definitely the sane people that we should be worrying about!