Beefed-up security will patrol the carparks of three Melbourne hospitals in a bid to crack down on violence against doctors and nurses. The mobile security teams will monitor the carparks at Sunshine, Footscray and Sunbury Day hospitals for an hour during nightshift changeovers. A tender released by Western Health said the security must “maintain high visibility” so staff felt safe leaving the hospital doors and walking to their cars. Staff will also be able to request “an escort” to their cars. It comes after a number of attacks in and around hospitals, including a serious assault that killed Box Hill Hospital surgeon Patrick Pritzwald-Stegmann. Footscray Hospital was also the site of a stabbing attack on brain surgeon Dr Michael Wong in 2014. Health Workers Union secretary Diana Asmar said Western Health staff were “run off their feet” dealing with violence. “Western Health is a hotspot for violent incidences against staff,” she said. “It is so frequent that much of it still goes unreported. Western Health’s health support services divisional director Christine Neumann said the patrols were expected to start in mid-February.
