Coronavirus: many health workers not reporting assaults

Queensland Health staff are being assaulted at alarming levels but are relatively unlikely to make a complaint of a criminal offence.

Former district judge John Robertson said despite the prevalence of assaults, he could not recall sentencing a single offender for the serious assault of a healthcare worker in more than two decades on the bench.

Queensland Health staff are being assaulted at alarming levels but are relatively unlikely to make a complaint of a criminal offence, with some care professionals viewing violence as part of the job, a report shows.

Almost 35,000 assaults on health department staff were reported internally in the past five years, the Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council report reveals.

It comes amid concerns nurses and doctors are being deliberately coughed and spat on during the coronavirus pandemic.

NSW nurses and midwives were last month told not to wear uniforms and scrubs outside due to abuse from people accusing them of spreading the virus, while federal Health Minister Greg Hunt warned of potential life sentences for anyone trying to spread the virus to healthcare workers.

The advisory council’s chairman, former District Court judge John Robertson, said despite the disturbing prevalence of assaults in the sector he could not recall sentencing a single offender for the serious assault of a healthcare worker in more than two decades on the bench.

Assaulting police or “public ­officers” including health workers is treated more seriously under Queensland law, with a maximum penalty of 14 years if the offence ­involves aggravating circumstances such as bodily harm or a person being spat on or bitten.

“One of the interesting things that our research has established is that frontline healthcare workers are the most likely to be assaulted in the workplace and the least likely to make a complaint of a criminal offence,” Mr Robertson told The Australian.

“The most common victim category for these serious offences … are police officers.

“We’re not sure why that is. Maybe it is institutional because the police and the police union have always been very conscious of the safety of their workers.”

Prior to COVID-19, Queensland Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath had asked the advisory council to investigate the adequacy of offences and penalties for assaults on police, corrective services staff and other public officers. Public officers include frontline emergency workers such as paramedics and public health workers, child safety officers and transit officers.

As part of its review, the advisory council is considering whether the definition of a public officer should be expanded to include other workers. It has released an issues paper summarising current events as it calls for public submissions.

Mr Robertson said the pandemic was redefining the frontline worker, with new fines of up to $13,000 for coughing or spitting on anyone from police to retail staff and ride-share and food delivery drivers.

“When you look at these COVID-19 offences that have been created under the Public Health Act, that’s been widened to include people who work in supermarkets,” he said.

Queensland Health recorded 34,844 incidents involving the ­assault of a staff member from 2014-15 to 2018-19, and had 2109 accepted WorkCover claims for assaults (a conversion rate of 6.1 per cent) in the same period, the issues paper reveals.

The Queensland Ambulance Service recorded 1656 incidents of assaults on staff and had 199 ­accepted WorkCover claims (12 per cent).

The Queensland Police Service recorded 9103 assaults of on-duty officers which resulted in charges, and had 3064 accepted WorkCover claims for assault (33.7 per cent).

“Public officers working in care professions, including healthcare, education, and emergency response sectors, under-report assaults committed against them as the professional orientation of these professions inhibits reporting,” the paper states.