Nurses have alerted the new justice minister. They expect a decisive response.
The President of the Supreme Council of Nurses and Midwives, Mariola Łodzińska, sent a letter to the Minister of Justice, Waldemar Żurek, emphasizing her readiness to cooperate in the fight against violence against medical personnel . Increasingly frequent physical and verbal attacks require decisive legal and systemic solutions.
"We appreciate your many years of service in the justice system—both as a judge of the District Court in Kraków and as a spokesperson for the National Council of the Judiciary. Your steadfast stance is an expression of your deep commitment to defending the rule of law," the president of the Supreme Council of Nurses and Midwives begins the letter.
"Your assumption of the position of Minister of Justice and Prosecutor General is an expression of trust and recognition of your achievements. We hope that a decisive response to the growing aggression against medical personnel, including nurses and midwives, will remain one of the priorities of your ministry . We appeal for close cooperation to develop effective legal and systemic solutions that will significantly increase the safety and legal protection of medical workers in the workplace," Łodzińska emphasizes in her letter.
He also points out that the current career path of the Minister of Justice gives hope for "simultaneously combining legal professionalism with care for citizens."
"We believe that your experience and independence will allow us to introduce positive changes in the area of healthcare worker protection. We are fully committed to cooperating," concludes the president of the Supreme Council of Nurses and Midwives.
The profession of nurse and midwife has always been associated with enormous responsibility, but today there is another problem - as research shows, violence against medical staff is becoming a disturbing everyday reality.
A survey conducted by the Polish National Trade Union of Nurses and Midwives (OZZPiP) surveyed 1,846 people; 1,702 declared they worked as nurses and 144 as midwives. 1,761 women and 80 men participated in the survey, and 5 did not answer the question about gender. The main source of aggression is patients (68%) or their family (38%), according to information provided by OZZPiP.
The OZZPiP noted that the dominant forms of aggression were verbal (91%), psychological (50%), and physical (47%). Respondents cited patient mental disorders, dissatisfaction with services, lack of patience with staff, patient stress, and conflict at work as the main reasons for aggression.
The study shows that, although aggression is common, there are no effective solutions to limit it or mitigate its effects. Nearly 25% of entities have no procedures in place to address aggressive behavior.
The OZZPiP reported that 54 percent of nurses and midwives still work in a workplace where they have witnessed aggression. Thirty-three percent witnessed or experienced aggression against themselves in the last month, 23 percent in the last six months, and 15 percent in the last year.
Nearly 70 percent of them experience aggression on a recurring basis, and only 30 percent treated the incident as a one-off, OZZPiP emphasized.
One-third of those who repeatedly experience aggression encounter it several times a month, nearly one-third several times a week. Five percent of nurses and midwives encounter it daily, according to the OZZPiP (Occupational Health and Safety Association).
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