Members of the Psychiatric Nurses' Association last night voted unanimously to hold an urgent ballot for industrial action over the increase in assaults on nurses.
A total of 6,000 members will be balloted in a vote due to commence in 10 days according to Des Kavanagh, general secretary of the association.
The decision to ballot followed the release of a survey revealing a total of over 1,200 assaults on nurses in 2005. This represented a 47 per cent increase on a similar survey undertaken in 2001.
Mr Kavanagh last night criticised the Department of Health's failure to provide work-safe practices and for its stalling of the 2003 taskforce recommendations which would have provided a compensation scheme for nurses injured as a result of serious assaults.
"We have had enough. One of these days someone will be killed, but none of us want to have that on our conscience so that's why we have to take action," he said.
However, in a statement issued last night the Health Service Executive said it places a particular emphasis on the safety and welfare of its staff and has in place a number of initiatives to support its staff.
A spokesman said that all staff in the mental health services are offered training in de-escalation techniques and in the management of verbal abuse, aggression or violence. In addition, all acute admission settings have personal attack alarms and post critical stress debriefing is available to staff if required.