Medical associations, civic groups and lawmakers yesterday voiced support for a “zero tolerance stance” against violence in medical facilities, after an emergency room (ER) doctor was assaulted by a patient’s son.
On May 6, actor Chen Ching-ta (陳清達) accompanied his mother to the emergency room of Changhua Christian Hospital.
Surveillance footage showed that a few minutes after arriving at the hospital, Chen punched the emergency room physician, resulting in a hematoma in the back of the the doctor’s head.
Jan Chun-chi (詹淳淇), a member of the Taiwan Medical Alliance for Labor Justice and Patient Safety’s (TMAL) Committee of Legal Study and Global Think Tank, said that Chen repeatedly shouted that his mother needed a ventilator, although the physician said she needed intubation — a procedure that requires a family member’s consent.
“While Chen Ching-ta accused the doctor of delaying treatment, his action alone interrupted the process by more than a minute,” Jan said.
“Chen’s assault against healthcare providers was not the first and might not be the last as violence in the ER is on the rise and the doctor-patient relationship deteriorating,” Jan said.
“Eighty percent of ER staff have encountered verbal and physical abuse and more than 30 percent have been physically attacked,” said Yen Zui-shen (顏瑞昇), a member of the Taiwan Society of Emergency Medicine.
TMAL chairman Chong Chee-fah (張志華) said that doctors nowadays carry audio recording devices or event data recorders to protect themselves.
Chang, Yen, Democratic Progressive Party legislators Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國) and Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) and Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) called for stationing police at hospitals and legal revisions, making infringements on medical safety an offense against public safety and therefore an indictable offense.
However, Taiwan Healthcare Reform Foundation chief executive officer Joanne Liu (劉淑瓊) expressed her concern over making violence at medical facilities a criminal offense without providing appropriate supporting measures.
“We are not pitting the ER against patients. We must keep in mind that hospital administrators and the government — the Department of Health and the Council of Labor Affairs — play a big role here,” Liu said.
“It is more crucial for hospitals to work on violence prevention measures such as personnel training and crisis management before any possible violent assault and a debriefing mechanism thereafter,” said Liu, adding that hospitals should also improve manpower allocation and strengthen physician-patient communication.
“More needs to be done on the government’s part as well. The Council of Labor Affairs in 2007 drafted regulations ordering hospitals to ensure workplace safety, but this draft was aborted in the end,” Liu said.
“It’s a shame that the policy on the issues of occupational safety has long been exceedingly influenced by the hospital administrators,” Liu added.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all