Michelle Daw, Yorke Peninsula Country Times

The nurses’ union has called for an urgent review of patient admission criteria and security measures at Yorketown Hospital after a terrifying incident where a patient allegedly threatened two nurses with knives.

Union representatives argue the hospital’s current security systems fail to protect staff, prompting calls for stronger safeguards to ensure the safety of healthcare workers and patients alike.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday, November 2, when a verbally aggressive Emergency Department patient is believed to have taken knives from the staff tearoom.

Nurses’ ordeal

Australian Nursing and Midwifery Foundation South Australian branch chief executive Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars said the nurses were forced to barricade themselves in the nurses’ station (a safe room) for up to 45 minutes until local police arrived.

“The nurses’ station has only one entry and exit point with no swipe card access, instead requiring a passcode to be entered,” she said.

“This delayed the time it took to access the room, meaning one nurse was forced to use a chair to fend off the patient whilst the door was being unlocked.”

The suspect, a 23-year-old Edithburgh woman, was arrested and charged with assaulting a prescribed emergency worker, carrying an offensive weapon and property damage.

She was bailed to appear in Maitland Magistrates Court on February 4.

A SAPOL spokesperson said police were called to the Yorketown Hospital at 12.29am on Saturday, November 2, in relation to a patient who was in possession of a knife.

“An officer was recalled from both Stansbury and Minlaton stations to attend the scene, with the first officer arriving on scene at 1.13am,” he said.

“The hospital did not have a security guard.” It is understood police then transferred the patient to Wallaroo Hospital, which has 24/7 security guards.

In a text read aloud on Radio 5AA on November 6, one of the nurses involved in the incident said the patient had access to all areas of the hospital.

“Our patients were extremely alarmed at what they could hear going on outside their rooms,” the text said.

“This person had access to those knives while wandering about the hospital destroying property.

“Our police are busy and serve our community well but, on the night in question, no local police were on duty.

“While we were locked in there (the safe room), we had to endure the perpetrator smashing on the windows and door looking to torment us and the patients until police arrived.

“I’ve said at work on multiple occasions prior to this traumatic event, it will take some one to be killed before they do anything.

“We weren’t killed, but we had to fight to defend our lives, which is totally unacceptable.”

In a letter to Yorke and Northern Local Health Network chief executive Roger Kirschner, Assoc. Prof. Dabars said ANMF was deeply concerned that a patient, reportedly affected by drugs and alcohol and injured in a violent incident, had been brought to Yorketown Hospital for treatment.

“Given that the hospital is staffed by only two personnel after hours, has no on-site doctor, and lacks security resources to manage patients at high risk of violence due to substance use or mental health conditions, this situation poses a serious safety risk to staff,” she said.

“We urge YNLHN to consider implementing specific after-hours admission criteria for such high-risk patients, along with a clear plan to transfer these patients to larger regional hospitals better equipped to provide the necessary care.”

The ANMF also called for swipe card access or passcode readers to be installed in critical areas of the hospital, such as the kitchen and outpatient treatment areas.

“Members are seriously concerned that anyone can access these areas that hold objects such as surgical instruments and utensils that could possibly be used as a weapon,”

Assoc. Prof. Dabars said. Assoc. Prof. Dabars said she would raise concerns with SA Police about the time it took for police to attend the incident.

YNLHN chief executive Roger Kirschner did not respond to specific questions from the YP Country Times about whether the board had discussed changing admission criteria to Yorketown Hospital when it met on November 6, but instead supplied a statement.

“We are always open to feedback from stakeholders and are currently reviewing the security measures at all our sites,” Mr Kirschner said in the statement.

“An expansion of swipe card access at Southern Yorke Peninsula Health Service is being assessed along with other infrastructure upgrades.”

Upgrade sought by hospital

Yorketown Hospital administration approached the Yorke Peninsula Health Advisory Council chair earlier this year for funding assistance to upgrade the hospital’s security system.

YPHAC chair and Member for Narungga Fraser Ellis said the approach was made because staff felt unsafe due to increasing instances of violent patients.

“Despite the completely legitimate concerns from staff the HAC resolved, rightly I believe, that providing a safe workplace is very much a job for the employer, SA Health,” Mr Ellis said.

“We communicated as such to YNLHN on August 12 and urged them to fund and install the upgrade as a matter of urgency, and a response received on October 11 indicated this request was under consideration.

Mr Ellis said he had contacted Yorketown Hospital and police following the incident and written to Health Minister Chris Picton, calling for the upgrade to be installed as soon as possible.

He said he intended to ask Police Minister Dan Cregan about the reported police response time in State Parliament this week. 

Police statements delayed by YNLHN

Nurses involved in a violent incident at Yorketown Hospital on Saturday, November 2, were initially delayed from making a statement to police, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Foundation has said.

In a letter to Yorke and Northern Local Health Network chief executive Roger Kirschner, ANMF SA branch chief executive, Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars said it was disappointing a directive had been issued to staff to wait for approval to make a statement to SA Police.

She said the ANMF had previously raised the issue with YNLHN.

“If a worker has suffered an assault, the reporting of that assault including the provision of witness statements regarding the assault, is directly related to the mitigation of health and safety risks and is therefore required to be authorised under law,” she said.

Assoc. Prof. Dabars said the two nurses received messages from YNLHN on Tuesday evening, November 5, informing them they had been granted permission to make statements.

They then arranged to attend the local police station on Friday morning, November 8, to make an official statement.

Mr Kirschner said both employees had now provided statements to police, but he did not respond to questions from the YP Country Times about the delayed approval for them to do so. 

This article appeared in Yorke Peninsula Country Times, 12 November 2024.