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Hundreds of nurses given safety alarms after racist violence

Gerry BradleyBBC News NI
WHSCT Shows three women and a man holding personal safety alarmsWHSCT
PCSP independent member Beverly Simpson (left), with Alan Philson from Unison and western trust chief executive Karen Hargan (right)

About 200 international nurses have been issued with personal safety alarms following last week's racist violence in parts of Northern Ireland.

They were given to nursing staff at Altnagelvin Hospital in Londonderry, where the trouble was relatively minor compared to other areas, especially Belfast.

Homes and vehicles were set alight when some of the protests against a knife attack on Stephen Ogilvie in north Belfast on 8 June, turned violent.

A Sudanese man, Hadi Alodid, 30, is charged with attempted murder and related charges following the incident.

Reuters Shows a petrol bomb in flames beside police Land Rovers Reuters
Northern Ireland made global headlines when a knife attack in north Belfast sparked days of disorder

The Western Health and Social Care Trust (WHSCT) said the personal safety alarms had been given out to provide "reassurance and support" following the disorder.

During the trouble, there were reports of racial intimidation of some health workers.

"The personal alarms provide reassurance for staff who walk alone to work or work late night shifts," the WHSCT said.

The Policing and Community Safety Partnership in Derry confirmed it had given 100 more personal safety alarms to the health union Unison to distribute among its members.

A further 100 were given to members of the the African Caribbean Community Network and the same amount to the North West Migrants' Forum.

The migrants' forum were given the alarms before the recent unrest.

I woman with dark hair is speaking directly to the camera. She has short dark hair and is wearing a pale blue and white shirt with applique flowers.
Rita Devlin, from the Royal College of Nursing, says she welcomes any measures which help protect health workers

Prof Rita Devlin, executive director of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in Northern Ireland, said they welcomed the contribution alarms could make to protect staff but they must not be used as substitutes for addressing the "root causes of the problem".

"Our position is that they just form part of a wider, properly considered approach rather than being seen as a stand-alone solution," she said.

The RCN official said no nurse should ever feel unsafe while delivering care.

During the disorder, police officers from Scotland were deployed to Northern Ireland in support of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The anti-immigration protests were followed last weekend by large anti-racism rallies in Belfast and Derry.

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