Injured nurse's fears for Carlisle hospital workers' safety
Last updated at 10:50, Saturday, 03 April 2010
A nurse who was badly injured in an incident at work involving a drunken hospital visitor says she fears for the safety of colleagues.
Helen Jackson, who was 16 weeks pregnant at the time, has revealed she suffered a miscarriage shortly after the incident in Carlisle’s Cumberland Infirmary accident and emergency unit.
David Wyllie was cleared of causing actual bodily harm following a trial at Carlisle Crown Court this week.
There was never any suggestion that his actions caused the baby’s death and the jury were never told about it. They determined that Mrs Jackson was injured as a result of a drunken accident, not a deliberate assault. But the nurse believes the jury should have been told she lost her baby and that a tougher line should be taken against drunk hospital visitors or patients.
“I want to make it clear that I fear for the nurses, doctors and receptionists in A&E. It makes a mockery of the zero-tolerance policy that we have and sends out the wrong message to the public,” she said.
The four-day court case revolved around an incident at the infirmary during the early hours of May 31 last year.
Mr Wyllie, 51, of Hillend Gardens, Annan, was at A&E with his 16-year-old son, who had been injured while trying to break up a fight. The father-of-four, who estimated he had drunk between 15 and 20 pints, fell asleep on a sofa in a corridor at the hospital.
Mrs Jackson, a staff nurse, woke him up and asked him to go back to his son’s cubicle.
As she walked away she felt an impact from behind.
She felt Mr Wyllie grab her round the waist and pull her to the floor, with his 19-stone frame on top of her. She suffered back injuries for which she still needs treatment.
Mr Wyllie was too drunk to remember the incident.
But he stressed he was not a violent man – with numerous good character references to prove it – and insisted it was a drunken stumble, as a result of which he grabbed Mrs Jackson to try and stop his fall.
The jury had to decide whether his actions were accidental, in which case he would be cleared, or if they were either deliberate, or at the very least reckless, in which case he would be found guilty.
On Thursday the jury of six men and four women – 10-strong after two members were released due to illness – found him not guilty. Mrs Jackson, who lives near Penrith, has spoken out following the verdict and criticised the way the case was handled by the courts.
She believes she should have been allowed to tell the jury that she lost her baby – although there was no medical evidence to prove it was a result of this incident – so that they were fully aware of all the facts.
She also revealed that she has not been able to work since the incident almost a year ago.
The 45-year-old, who also has a six-year-old daughter, said regardless of exactly what or why it happened, the incident has turned her life
“Before this happened my life was great. I’d just married John, was back off honeymoon and I was pregnant,” she said.
“A week later I had lost my baby, Evie, and was having to bury her. I will always believe that what happened contributed to her death.”
Mrs Jackson believes that having seen what she, and her colleagues who gave evidence as witnesses, have been through during the trial, other NHS staff will be reluctant to report incidents and press charges in the future.
“We have felt like we were on trial. Our credibility has been questioned beyond belief,” she said.
First published at 09:03, Saturday, 03 April 2010
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk
