Nurses call for safety improvements after Langley hospital attack [Video]

The union representing nurses in B.C. is calling for more action on safety in the workplace, after a recent attack on a nurse at the Langley Memorial Hospital.

One person was arrested in the March 8 incident that police said involved an “edged weapon.” The nurse, who was not a member of the union, did not suffer serious injuries.

But BC Nurses’ Union president Adriane Gear said violence in health care settings is on the rise, and more needs to be done to keep them safe.

“There are about 46 serious assaults per month, and when I am saying ‘serious’ I am classifying that as requiring a time-loss claim from WorkSafeBC,” Gear said.

“And that does not take into account all the near-misses, incidents of violence that maybe cause physical or psychological injury that do not necessarily require a claim.”

One concern nurses have is the lack of a system …