By Jane McCready Chairwoman of the Royal College of Nursing Scotland

Here, Jane McCready of RCN Scotland argues that society needs to change so that those in the frontline no longer face violence.

Jane McCready believes attitudes need to change

Violence against healthcare staff should not be tolerated under any circumstances.

It is a sad reflection on our society that the very staff who are there to care and support people can be subjected to such abuse and assault.

One in three nurses have been physically assaulted at work at some stage in their career.

Indeed, nurses are the second most likely occupation to suffer violent assaults at work. Only security and protective service staff are more at risk.

Scotland is leading the UK in tackling violence against healthcare staff, with the most important step being the introduction of the Emergency Workers Act which came into force in May 2005.

'Good start'

Only one month later, these new powers were used against a woman who had been abusive to nursing staff in the Borders. She was given a six month prison sentence.

A good start, but introducing legislation alone is not going to solve the problem.

For a start, the new act does not protect staff who are working in the community, so we now have a two-tier system where some healthcare workers have more legal protection than others.

The Scottish Executive has said that it will look at widening this to include those working in the community and I hope it will do so soon.

Staff have the right to come to work without fear of getting attacked or abused

These staff are just as open to abuse as those who work in our hospitals, so they should have the right to the same levels of protection.

It also remains to be seen how much the legislation will be used.

There is still a culture in some workplaces which makes staff feel like they are making a fuss when they report an incident.

This has to change.

Staff have the right to come to work without fear of getting attacked or abused and it is NHS boards' responsibility to do all they can to create that safe environment.

Even when employers take the issue seriously, there is still suspicion amongst some staff that the police and prosecutors don't take the issue seriously enough.

Safe place

In a recent case in England, the local hospital and England's NHS Security Management Service were forced to take a private prosecution out against a man who assaulted a nurse so badly that she will be scarred for life. This was after the police had said that it was not in the public interest to pursue the case.

And it is not all about laws and prosecutions.

It is also about creating a safe place for people to work.

That means spending money. Yes, the executive has announced funding initiatives and poster campaigns to support the work of local NHS boards, but more needs to be done.

Jane McCready believes attitudes need to change

It might mean employing more healthcare workers so there are more staff available to deal with difficult patients, having more security staff around the hospital, posting police in A&E at weekends or even changing the ways our hospitals and surgeries are laid out so staff are not so vulnerable.

It will also mean ensuring all staff are trained to deal with difficult situations when they arise.

All these solutions might sound expensive but if we don't invest then it will be a nurse or some other worker who will pay the price.

Any attack on a nurse is one attack too many and it is unacceptable that any healthcare worker is going to work worrying about being attacked or abused.

Society has to change. People must be made to see that attacking NHS staff is not on.

This means politicians, NHS boards, the police and the courts all supporting our hard-working staff who are out there providing high quality care under sometimes difficult and stressful circumstances.

BBC Scotland's Frontline team are making a programme about violence in the workplace. If you have suffered an assault at work, you can contact the programme at helpfrontline@bbc.co.uk with your experiences.