Can I get compensation? Assaulted at hospital

[Plzstopthisstupidity]

Good evening Mumsnet

My sister recently announced she is pregnant and it brought back a memory of something I had buried.

5 years ago, I had a C-section. The day after in hospital, when I was recovering, a nurse grabbed me by the neck in a hallway of patients, staff and visitors and threatened me. She verbally and physically assaulted me.

I can’t discuss the reasons behind it but long story short was she verbally abused me in private (my room) and then when she heard me trying to complain, she grabbed me.

The manager of the maternity ward saw this and spoke to me. She apologised and comforted me. I was humiliated, sobbing and traumatised at the time.

I moved on. I still think about it… more so recently.

I was given the nurse’s name and found out that she is still working in the hospital (this was a year ago not sure if she is still there now).

I am starting to feel immensely angry about what happened. Part of me wants to take legal action.

Mumsnet: is there anything I can do? Is it worth even doing anything as it’s been so long since it happened?

just looking for ideas/advice - thank you!!

OP I'm very sorry you're so distressed about this incident. I am a retired midwife and I've worked with many nurses and midwives who had appalling attitudes to patient care.

When I was a patient myself I had some bad experiences with some of them.

Rudeness, withholding pain relief................. yes, I've experienced that.

But not physical violence.

You say that you weren't on strong painkillers, but you'd just given birth and would have had morphine or fentanyl in the anaesthetic.

It does seem likely that an incident of rudeness took place, and you imagined the assault part of it.

If a ward manager witnessed an assault in her department, the police would have been called and the staff member dismissed.

I hope that you can, one day, come to terms with your baby's traumatic birth.

Oh there are definitely unstable nurses working out there. I was a nurse many years ago and worked with a nurse with a personality disorder. Officially diagnosed. She was absolutely vile at times. Would corner colleagues and threaten them. Held a knife to one of them. She would throw stuff and break equipment. She would scream "FUCK YOU!", walk off the ward and go home.
Our poor ward manager was constantly going to her manager about it, but they just told her there was nothing to be done. She couldn't be touched because she had a disability. But as far as I know she never touched a patient, just other staff.

In your case, I think the ward manager was hoping you would put in a complaint so the higher ups would finally have to take action to remove her. I'm not sure what can be done now, sadly. Contact PALS and see what they say.

BTW, I had a severe birth injury and DC1 and I both nearly died. The only compensation that mattered to me was that he and I both survived.

Whatever medication I was on, a hospital staff member grabbed me at the neck (collar/skin) and swore at me.

For the person who said a slip of paper wouldn’t be given, I literally have it among my baby notes. Did I write that myself and tuck it away? How would I have even known her name?

There must be a record. I am going to ring the hospital tomorrow and chase this up. Forget the money. I am just really angry right now.

A hospital isn’t going to give financial compensation for this. You didn’t report it. You didn’t do anything.

@Mailista Excuse me? The only compensation that mattered to you is that you and the baby survived? Are you trying to say that this was not important - the most important - thing to me?

I actually cannot comprehend some of these comments. Good lord. I am speechless right now. I am shaking.

For financial compensation you do need a financial loss though either through mental or physical health that can be proved from the day it happened.

Theres no such a thing as a small payout for having experiances something unless ita offered to cover something up which wasnt necessary as you didnt report it.

This thread is potentially suggesting you have a tendency to be dramatic. I'd be interested to hear a third party account.
Follow it up with the hospital if that will give you peace of mind, but I think prepare yourself that it won't give you the money you're looking for.

But that’s not comparable is it? Maybe the nurse couldn’t give you pain meds as the doctor hadn’t yet prescribed them? Some patients do opioid seek so A&E staff can be wary of patients demanding analgesia before others. Of course there always are genuine patients but there are many that aren’t. But anyway back to the op..

I just can’t believe this ‘assault’ was witnessed by so many people yet never investigated or security/police called.

Why would the manager risk her NMC pin by covering it up? Why would the nurses stand by and watch a patient be assaulted? Why wouldn’t you or your family or another patient contact PALS if they witnessed you be grabbed by the throat and threatened on a ward by a staff member?

It just doesn’t make sense!

OP I know the what's it like to feel extremely vulnerable during/after a caesarean and how much trauma than can leave.

I had a horrific delivery during my last caesarean. Really, really horrific.

The midwife berated me for asking for an epidural (my baby was transverse, they hoped that induced labour may turn her), saying that it was my fault that the labour stopped progressing (after 24 hours), and I should have stayed on diamorphine, which I reacted terribly to.

Luckily another midwife came on and I jumped the queue (rightly) of all the other labouring mothers.

When they decided that I needed a crash caesarean (after the umbilical cord came out and my uterus tore), the first midwife was back. She wanted to leave DH asleep, luckily the student midwife woke him.

She then made me move just after I got into recovery, making my stitches rip open. She also argued with the doctors that I didn't need a foil blanket thing they put on me (I was also having a blood transfusion after losing 3.5litres of blood).

The icing on the cake, which is the thing that makes me most angry - she put hat on my baby. A hat with a little ribbon, which caused damage. She also wasn't dressed in the clothes I'd supplied, the ones I'd made sure everyone knew, were to be put on her.

She was on again the next day and I'm afraid I swore and screamed at her.

I had EMDR to try to rid me of the PTSD, and even last year, 11 years on, I had an operation and my blood pressure dropped dangerously low when they put a cannula in. I still have a physical, unconscious reaction to medical procedures, as if my body remembers, even if I think I've moved on.

Maybe look into EMDR, it sounds like you have PTSD and that may help. Can't help with the physical attack and I doubt you'll get compensation, but EMDR may help with the unconscious trauma you have.

I believe you. I've had two horrific deliveries and MN definitely wouldn't believe some of the shit that happened to me.

I think you should talk to the police. They will be able to advise you on how to approach reporting a historical crime and what the possible outcomes are. I'm so sorry this terrifying thing happened to you when you were at your most vulnerable. No wonder it's still playing on your mind.

I think you need to contact the hospital and establish if there is a record of this.

I would have expected her to be fired

I just stepped out in the cold for a walk. I need air after some of the things I’ve read. I am angry. I was assaulted.

I would like some sort of compensation. Would I get any money in a situation like this

No, no you won’t but nice try.

*But 100% you should be absolutely furious & even if you just make out like you only just discovered shes still working there (presuming you knew beforehand) they can't prove you didn't make a complaint at the time & absolutely demand she be removed

(Posted to soon. Sorry)

@laurenlodge Yes, I must be dramatic for reading the callous responses when asking for rough advice about an assault I experienced after delivering my child.

I hope you aren’t a woman, labelling other women as “dramatic” for having emotion.

It must be the drama inside me that allows me to live a relatively calm and fulfilling life after overcoming much trauma in my previous years. That must be how I run a team of people in a Civil Service role that requires me to use my brain and neutrality to produce results.

God forbid, a woman “feel” lest she be labelled dramatic. Ha.

Women aren't exempt from being called dramatic (or over dramatic as the case may be). What an odd sentiment. No one is suggesting you can't have strong feelings in relation to what I understand would have been a terrible time for you. I can also think however that 'shaking' in response to strangers typing things online is dramatic. Those things aren't mutually exclusive.

My concern would be that it might cause more trauma if you were to dredge it all back up. If it doesn't go your way you may end up feeling much worse than before, having brought it all back up to then end with no more resolution than before.

Generally, I would usually say to report these things but years and years later it becomes harder - obviously if we were talking rape/sexual abuse or grievous bodily harm it would be different, not to minimise your situation.

I think a big issue is looking back and wishing you'd acted differently in the knowledge you would now - I used to do that with a bullying boss who I never stood up to at the time. Maybe you need to kind of 'decide' your stance on it to give yourself resolution. Like, 'a woman grabbed my lapel and shouted at me five years ago. She was out of order and I'd never let her get away with it nowadays, but it was a long time ago so I'm putting it to bed and moving on. Lucky for her!'

Apologies - I haven't read the whole thread, so if this duplicates what's said then that's why.

You can request your notes and any other documentation via a Subject Access Request, so you can see what is documented.

You could go to the police. If you did, then you might be able to make a claim via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board. When I did so, best part of a decade ago, the board had to consider it more likely than not that you had been the victim of the crime. To give you a sense of likely compensation, the going rate then for a sexual assault over clothing was £1000. I don't know how this would compare.

You could also report her to the NMC. This would not get you any money but they are the people whose role it is to investigate serious professional misconduct.

I have no idea how viable any of this is five years on. I suspect it depends on whether anyone is able to identify the witnesses, or if there is any record on file of what you recall happening.

No you asked if you could get money out of it.

If reading some of these unkind comments that are insinuating I care about money grabbing has made me dramatic or whatever because I need to take a walk to process what I am reading, I really could not care less.

Lord help me I hope your daughters don’t go through things like this if this is how the world responds in the face of a medical assault.

My mistake is I assumed better. That is what has caught me off guard tonight.

You should contact the police. You say there were witnesses. An investigation will identify patients who were there at the same time that you were. Staff rotas will still be held identifying exactly who was on duty. Witnesses will have a clear recollection of such a shocking incident.

If my daughter went through this I would have reported it within minutes yet none of your family did, none of the staff and none of the witnesses and neither did you for that matter.

@Plzstopthisstupidity your opening question was literally about money. Not seeking the truth, not justice, not healing, just money. If the shoe fits...