NURSES last week called off their threatened walk-out from Dandenong Hospital emergency department after breakthrough talks with Monash Health.
Monash Health agreed to immediately increase the number of security guards and to introduce a protocol for dealing with violent, unarmed people in the hospital from July 1.
“This is a very positive response to the emergency department nurses’ extremely serious concerns for their safety,” Australian Nursing Federation state assistant secretary Paul Gilbert said.
Nurses were also demanding the reinstatement of a senior nurse demoted for tackling an aggressive intruder in Dandenong Hospital’s emergency triage section. ANF and Monash Health failed to resolve the matter in conciliation talks. The issue will be decided at a Fair Work Australia hearing.
A Monash Health spokeswoman said managers were “progressively implementing” recommendations from a 2011 state inquiry into violence against nurses.
She said Dandenong Hospital was “in the process of working with staff” to introduce a Code Grey protocol — dealing with violent, unarmed people — by mid-year. “Dandenong Hospital is committed to a compressive approach to security with the implementation of even more CCTV and security personnel.”
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