BURNABY, British Columbia, Canada – A psychiatric nurse at the Maples Adolescent Treatment Centre was attacked by a patient, despite authorities increasing security measures at the facility in response to recent attacks on nurses.
Maples Adolescent Treatment Centre houses disturbed youth when they are found unfit to stand trial or not criminally responsible. Last month, a CBC News investigation revealed that many of the facility’s workers were repeatedly assaulted by the mentally ill patients.
In response, authorities hired security guards to monitor the mental hospital around the clock and issued new panic alarms to employees.
At the time of the recent attack, a nurse was assaulted by a particularly violent patient who punched the nurse in the back of the head several times, CBC News reports.
There was a new security guard on duty at the time; however, he was posted outside the unit and was not allowed to intervene when the punching started because he hadn’t received his full training.
Hospital officials maintain that an incident like that won’t happen again, but nurses are skeptical. They are currently asking for a new alarm system and more guards on duty.
