The NHS, Metropolitan Police, and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) are working together to improve the prosecution rates of criminal investigations after assaults on NHS workers. A four month trial scheme, Operation Cavell, will cover five boroughs, Lambeth, Southwark, Bromley, Croydon and Sutton.
Police report that over the last three years, violent attacks in health and social care have been three times as high as other industries. Figures from the trade union Unison suggest that across the UK there were more than 56,000 physical assaults on NHS workers – itself suggestive of a lack of a central NHS security management service, to gather such data, now that the security management and counter-fraud unit set up in the 2000s only works on counter-fraud. Like other fields of front-line work, healthcare workers complain that assaults on staff are not taken seriously by line managers nor taken up by police.
Michael Holland, Medical Director at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our staff should be able to come to work without fear of violence, injury, abuse or harassment. As an organisation, the safety, health and wellbeing of our colleagues is of paramount importance and I hope this valuable partnership work will help our staff feel safer and more supported.”
Simon Jackson, Local Security Management Specialist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are very pleased to be driving Operation Cavell which we hope will improve support for health workers on the frontline. Currently, only seven per cent of people who commit physical assaults on health workers are prosecuted. We are looking forward to working closely with our colleagues in the Met Police and the Crown Prosecution Service.”
Met Chief Inspector Luke Mooney is leading the operation for the South Area Command Unit with colleagues from the Central South Command Unit. He said: “The Met has worked very hard recently to ensure assaults against officers are rigorously investigated and this has seen an increase in convictions. We want to bring the same support to assaults on NHS workers. We are liaising closely with the CPS and the NHS trusts concerned and together we are driving the project forward.
“Assaults on NHS staff are totally unacceptable, these are people dedicated to helping others and preventing harm. NHS workers are facing incredible challenges at the moment, they should not have to face the additional concern of abuse or assault. This operation is a way of showing these brave frontline workers that they are being supported.
“All those involved will be carefully monitoring the results and, just as importantly, seeking feedback from those affected. We want to make sure we learn the lessons, from either successes or failures, and ensure that continuous improvement is at the heart of this operation.”
Michael Mallon, CPS London South District Crown Prosecutor and lead on Operation Cavell, said: “The CPS has been very clear that disgraceful attacks on emergency workers, particularly at a time of national emergency, will not be tolerated. This important work with our NHS and police partners shows our joint commitment to protecting health workers in London, who must be able go about their critical work without threat of physical harm. No one should be in any doubt that these attacks will be met with a strong multi-agency response and the consequences will be serious.”
The Met’s Operation Hampshire has acted similarly in cases of assaults on police officers. Operation Cavell aims to ensure all crimes are dealt with by specialised and dedicated police investigators; use police investigators, who have experience consulting, supporting or liaising with the NHS; assign senior investigators to review all assaults against the NHS; assess case management performance with police and CPS via regular multi-agency reviews; and seek NHS ‘staff satisfaction’ ratings for each crime reported to police.
