SIPTU today called for a no fault scheme in relation to workplace accidents as they responded to the publication today of the annual report into health and safety in the health services.
The report found there had been over a three-fold increase in the number of assaults suffered by health workers since 1994.
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National Nursing Official, Mr Oliver McDonagh, said the no fault scheme would ensure assault victims do not have to go through the"additional trauma of proving liability in a court".
Mr McDonagh said it would also speed up the settlement of claims which he said can take up to seven or eight years to settle.
"For a long time SIPTU has been saying that not only is there not enough protection for nurses and other health care workers, but that when an assault takes place, the lack of support in such circumstances is appalling."
Mr McDonagh many workers found themselves coping with thetrauma of a serious assault in isolation, receiving little or no communication from their employers.
"As far as SIPTU is concerned prevention is the best cure, and management must concentrate on protecting its employees andputting in place the proper structures to help the victim cope with the trauma of a serious assault and not just in protecting itself from liability," Mr McDonagh said.