By Caroline Ryan BBC News Online Health staff in Harrogate

Nurses say they still face violence from patients

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said in one case, a district nurse had been held hostage by a patient's husband when she went to visit her at home.

Many others suffer verbal or physical intimidation, nurses claimed.

You could be facing a dangerous situation with a client who may be violent Ngaire Baldock, District nurse, West Sussex

The RCN's annual congress in Harrogate is set to discuss zero tolerance of violence in a debate on Wednesday.

One in three nurses report they have been physically assaulted at work during their career, an RCN survey showed last year.

Community nurses are angry that initiatives to reduce violence against NHS staff have concentrated on staff in hospitals.

They say many district nurses are not even given mobile phones to call in if they find themselves in danger.

Unaware

Ngaire Baldock, a district nurse in Shoreham, West Sussex, said: "The problem of violence has never really gone away.

"As a district nurse, I often work on my own.

"If you're unaware of the background , you could be facing a dangerous situation with a client who may be violent.

"And I see colleagues who have been really verbally harassed by patients."

She added: "And the trust will not support us with mobile phones - we have to use our own.

"I think community nursing is often forgotten about because it doesn't make headlines."

She said it was essential primary care trusts acted to reduce the risk to NHS staff working in the community.

Sheelagh Brewer, RCN employment relations advisor, said: "The RCN has sent guidance to the Department of Health about the issue."

But she said it had not been implemented by trusts.