Respect plea as paramedics braced for festive abuse

A paramedic who was punched, verbally abused and threatened with sexual assault during a festive call‑out is now leading a campaign urging the public to show respect to emergency workers.

Emily Jackson, 31, was attacked in a pub by a patient who had become ill after drinking alcohol and taking drugs.

The campaign comes as 53% of ambulance crews said they had been physically attacked while on duty in the last year, while 44% said they had been sexually harassed.

London Ambulance Service (LAS) called the abuse shocking and said it was the first ambulance service in the country to set up a special unit to support colleagues to report crimes and work with police to pursue abusers.

The service said 562 frontline staff have been assaulted three or more times in 12 months.

Alcohol and drugs are believed to be a contributing factor in about 40% of the incidents against paramedics, according to the service.

Emily said the attack on her happened at this time of year, when people were out drinking or partying.

When she got to the pub, she said the patient was unconscious on the floor.

"He was struggling to breathe and I worried he was going to stop breathing and go into cardiac arrest," she said.

"We were getting ready to do an ECG when he regained consciousness. He was friendly at first then suddenly switched.

"He looked ready to fight the whole pub and made sexually aggressive comments to me. He was throwing punches and I got hit in the face."

The attacker left the pub but walked back in soon after.

"It was like a horror film – I just froze. He threatened to rape me and said he would dump my body in an alleyway.

"That threat frightened me more than when he was throwing punches; it chilled me."

Emily said she wanted to continue working but suffered a breakdown a few days later.

"It wasn't the first time I'd been attacked at work, and it wasn't the last. It takes its toll," she said.

Her attacker was later jailed for eight months for beating and threatening an emergency worker.

Chief executive of LAS, Jason Killens, said: "No one should face this at work.

"On top of the hurt and harm it causes our people, it can prevent us from caring for patients who need our help."

Staff who experience assaults are often themselves left deeply traumatised, with some needing months off work or even leaving the service altogether, he added.

All ambulances are now fitted with CCTV and audio recording and all crews can opt to wear body-worn cameras.

Emily is now working on a project to protect call handlers from abuse following her experience.

"All we are asking for is respect – on the phone, on the road and in the communities we serve," added Mr Killens.

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