Shocking moment paramedic attacked and pushed out of ambulance by abusive patient
Video capturing the moment a paramedic was pushed by a patient out the back of an ambulance
Shocking footage showing the moment a paramedic was attacked and pushed out the back of an ambulance by an abusive patient has been shared.
London Ambulance Service (LAS) has released video footage of a 30-year-old paramedic crashing to the ground after an attack outside Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in west London last year.
The paramedic, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: "It was very painful – so much so I thought I had broken my arm at first.
"There was such a sharp pain and then numbness.”
The patient is then seen exiting the ambulance and walks away with no reaction to the paramedic lying on the ground clutching his injured arm.
Police were at the scene already and promptly arrested the patient, who has since been convicted and ordered to pay the paramedic compensation.
Prior to the attack, the patient had verbally abused both ambulance crew members, used homophobic language and urinated in the emergency vehicle.
Chief paramedic John Martin said: “Our ambulance crews and call handlers come to work to help Londoners at times of need.
“It is one of the best jobs in the city but we cannot, and will not, accept violence or physical threat towards them.
“Working with our partners, we will do everything possible to keep them safe, including securing convictions where possible.”
In the period of April 2022 to March 2023, there were 561 reports of physical assault on ambulance crews and while many offenders will never go to court on medical grounds, there were 38 successful prosecutions.
In the same year, LAS submitted 156 clips of video evidence to police.
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