EXCLUSIVE

THE State Hospital at Carstairs has been given until the end of July to comply with the law and set in place a system for reporting dangerous incidents, including assaults on staff, to the Health and Safety Executive.

The hospital houses some of Scotland's most dangerous patients in conditions of high security and if the management fails to meet its legal obligations it could be reported to the procurator-fiscal.

State Hospital management is vigorously defending its procedures and pointing to a 63% reduction in internal incidents in recent years, with a further 10% reduction this year. The improvement notice served on the hospital comes after years of pressure by one of the main unions representing nurses, the Scottish Prison Officers' Association.

Its chairman, David Melrose, said yesterday: ''Although it is a hospital, the staff there are every bit as vulnerable to assault as anyone in the toughest prisons.

''Many of the people they are dealing with daily come from the courts or from prison and they can be violent at any time. Some are the most dangerous people in society.''

One nurse working at the hospital told The Herald that the level of injuries was very high, with as many as 30% of staff suffering assault. He also pointed to Government research figures showing that hospital staff were now twice as liable to be assaulted while on duty as police officers.

Membership of the SPOA, a hangover from the historical past when the State Hospital was more of a prison, is believed to be around three quarters of the nursing staff of around 300. The other main unions are the RCN and Unison.

The majority of the patients, around 70%, suffer from some form of schizophrenia, but around 10% also have a certain degree of severe personality disorder. A high percentage of the women patients in the female ward have been transferred from Cornton Vale Prison.

The SPOA says that with the clamp-down on trade unions under the previous Government, staff have faced increasing difficulties in dealing with the State Hospital management. They have been forced to revert to the use of health and safety issues to secure improvements in their working conditions.

The Herald understands from nurses that health and safety committees have twice been formed but have become defunct. One nurse said: ''The management just ignored the committee because it caused trouble. They made sure it didn't work.''

Mr Melrose added: ''The regulations - the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations - were put in place so that the Health and Safety Executive can monitor trends and determine if intervention is necessary to ensure the safety of people at that hospital, patients as well as staff. If you don't report incidents the legislation does not work.

''We understand from our health and safety representatives in the hospital that the management person charged with health and safety did not have any forms and had not been sending any information in. The picture is one of a deeply negative approach over a number of years to health and safety issues by this management.

''I think it should be embarrassed by this order being served. Its cavalier approach to unions and negotiating has meant it is little more than a dictatorship.''

The HSE confirmed to The Herald that it had carried out a routine inspection at the hospital earlier this year, resulting in the order being served.

''They have until July 31 to comply with it and during that time we will have ongoing contact with the hospital,'' it said.

''Further visits will be arranged if necessary. We intend to monitor the number of incidents which are reported and if they are not complying they could be reported to the procurator-fiscal.''

A State Hospital spokesman said: ''The State Hospital was extremely surprised to receive this notice because it evidently relates to a technicality.

''The State Hospital contracts to an organisation called Salus, a local NHS service providing health and safety support to the NHS. The Health and Safety Executive apparently believes that Salus, despite being part of the NHS, cannot report on behalf of the NHS.

''The State Hospital will do everything possible to maintain patient safety and public safety and always welcomes the advice of the HSE on these issues. The hospital already monitors and reports accidents, assaults and incidents to a wide range of public bodies.''

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