The emergency room of one of Montreal’s largest hospitals has become “dangerous” because of an increase in aggressive and armed patients, denounce CHUM employees.
“It’s dangerous to work in the emergency room,” says the president of the Union of employees of the Center hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (SÉCHUM), Anick Mailhot. At some point, there will be a serious accident.”
The mega-hospital, in the heart of downtown Montreal, finds itself in spite of itself in the epicenter of the homelessness and drug addiction crisis that is currently shaking the metropolis.
Worse than before
And if the clientele has always been more difficult, Mme Mailhot considers that it has become more worrying after the pandemic.
She maintains that three weeks ago, a security guard was injured during an intervention. This winter, a doctor himself had to calm an unstable patient, who was wielding a knife.
Screwdrivers, knives or other weapons, “it’s common […] and we are always on the lookout, ”says the president.
“I have received death threats,” laments an emergency nurse on condition of anonymity. “I understand that they are ill… but not at the expense of my safety,” he said, adding that he is considering requesting a transfer to another department.
The SECHUM says it even asked for metal detectors at the entrance or cut-resistant uniforms, without success, because of its concerns for the staff.
The CHUM emergency department is struggling with violence, particularly at night. COURTESY
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The president of the FIQ, at the CHUM, Nathalie Bélanger, also reports incidents of verbal abuse, especially. She also deplores that the nurses who go out to smoke at night are “attacked” by passers-by.
Emergency physician and medical chief of the CHUM emergency department, Dr.r Alexandre Larocque notices a “progressive increase in aggressive and violent behavior in emergency rooms” throughout Quebec.
But he points out that the CHUM serves a disadvantaged sector with a vulnerable clientele. And even if bladed weapons are seized from the sick, these “are not always used as such”, he argues.
White Codes
Head nurse in the emergency room, Karell Bossé indicates that on average, two to three white codes per day are triggered at the CHUM. An intervention triggered when an employee perceives a risk, for him or the patient.
It ensures the abundant presence of security guards on the premises for all shifts.
A psychosocial worker is also on duty to help patients who need a place to sleep or eat at night, for example.
For its part, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) does not say whether its officers are patrolling the area more, refusing to comment on this public safety issue.
- Listen to Marie Montpetit’s interview with Anick Mailhot, president of the CHUM employees’ union via QUB-radio :
Emergency physicians concerned about violence
Concerned about violence in emergency rooms and the increase in bladed weapons in circulation, emergency physicians in Quebec want to improve safety before a serious event occurs.
“We must not wait for someone to be stabbed or shot in an emergency to act”, reacts the Dr Gilbert Boucher, President of the Association of Emergency Medicine Specialists of Quebec (ASMUQ).
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“But we don’t want waiting rooms to become prisons with metal detectors and police at the entrance. We have to find a middle ground,” he said.
The issue of employee and patient safety in Quebec emergency rooms is of growing concern to emergency physicians. In particular, there is an increase in the number of edged weapons in circulation.
What are we doing?
“Before, it was sporadic, but there, there are more. What do you do when someone has a knife? asks the specialist, without knowing the answer.
Since December, the Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur has set up a pilot project that allows visual searches of patients entering the emergency room. On average, five objects are seized per day (such as knives).
According to the Dr Boucher, this reality is reported in several hospitals in large urban centers (Montreal, Quebec, Sherbrooke).
Furthermore, the physical or verbal abuse of users can also stem from all sorts of other problems: mental health, intoxication, long waits.
“Just defining the problem is not easy,” he admits. Waiting rooms can become explosive with long waits.”
bad drug
“The rise in aggressiveness is something that we observe due to the [mauvaise] quality of the drug that has been circulating since the pandemic. It is widespread, widespread in vulnerable populations, ”adds Marie-Pier Therrien, director of communications at the Old Brewery Mission, which helps homeless people in Montreal.
“It’s not surprising that it is reflected in hospital settings, because we see it on the street,” she said.