Stab vests issued to Footscray and Sunshine hospitals after doctor attack

STAB vests will be issued to frontline staff in two Victorian hospitals after an attack on a Melbourne doctor and increasing violence toward staff.

Hospital staff issued stab vests

STAB vests will be issued to frontline staff in two Victorian hospitals after an attack on a Melbourne doctor and increasing violence toward staff.

Sixty of the protective vests will be handed out to security officers at Sunshine and Footscray Hospitals in the new year.

The move comes after doctor Michael Wong was stabbed more than 13 times by a paranoid schizophrenic patient who believed doctors at the Footscray Hospital had mistreated him.

The man had loitered in the foyer for the highly respected surgeon on February 18, 2014 and stabbed him repeatedly in the chest, stomach and arms. Mr Wong survived the ­attack but his case revealed the threat to frontline emergency staff.

The fluorescent knife-proof vests will be similar to the protection worn by Victoria Police officers.

They have been approved as hospital workers in Victoria report increasing incidences of aggressive patients suffering from “waiting room rage”.

Health Minister Jill Hennessy. Picture: Hamish Blair

Previous reports have shown hundreds of “code grey” alerts for aggressive, threatening behaviour at 14 of Victoria’s state hospitals.

Health Minister Jill Hennessy said the Government was keen to protect its staff.

“It is especially concerning that our dedicated doctors and nurses who care for others — often at their most vulnerable — face a greater risk of violence,’’ she said. “Our highly skilled frontline health care workers deserve to feel safe at work so they can do their job treating patients and saving lives.”

The armour will be funded under the Victorian Government’s $20 million Health ­Service Violence Prevention Fund.

Acting Western Health CEO Russell Harrison said the knife protection armour for ­security staff would help keep hospital waiting rooms safe. “These high-performance safety vests are part of a holistic security solution that is being undertaken by Western Health and an extension of our commitment to quality, safety and the patient experience.’’

Under the scheme the Royal Women’s Hospital will receive new security control doors, the Rochester and Elmore district hospitals will receive new CCTV, and personal duress alarms will be issued to Peter Mac centre workers who work in the community alone.

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