08 September 2025
Six children of healthcare heroes are fronting a new campaign aimed at stopping aggressive,
violent and intimidating behaviour towards Health and Care Jersey workers.
Posters, roadside banners and social media posts will feature the child models with slogans
such as: “My mummy works here. Please keep her safe at work”.
The campaign was launched after figures revealed that so far this year staff have reported
452 incidents of verbal, physical, racial and sexual abuse – the equivalent of more than one
incident a day.
As well as the public campaign, which aims to highlight the impact aggressive behaviour can
have on health and care workers, the department has also appointed a clinical co-ordinator
to help train employees on how to recognise behaviour that has the potential to become
problematic and how to de-escalate a situation.
Ted, whose mum Mel works in the Mental Health team, is one of the superstars who have
taken part in the campaign. The seven-year-old Samarès School pupil said: “I feel really
happy about my mummy being a nurse because my mummy helps people with their health
and helps them feel better. My mummy helps lots of people with poorly minds. I want
everybody to be kind to my mummy when she is in work because it will make me sad if my
mummy is sad.”
Brother and sister Malachi and Michealla, whose dad Rufaro is a Charge Nurse, also star in
the campaign.
Michaella, a Year 5 pupil at Bel Royal School, said: “I’m proud of my father because his job
involves helping people. I’m proud that he is deputy ward manager, this allows him to meet
and help a lot of people.”
Malachi, a Year 7 pupil at De La Salle, added: “I wanted to be in this campaign to
highlight the importance of nurses working in a safe environment and not to be abused.”
Of the 452 incidents that have been reported in the first eight months of this year, more than
half (238) were physical assaults. Of these, nine were reports of sexual abuse, three were
racial in nature and six involved the use of a weapon.
Meanwhile, 151 incidents of verbal abuse were recorded. Of these, ten were racially
motivated and five were sexual in content. A further four included the threat to use a
weapon.
HCJ has a range of sanctions that can be taken against those who knowingly abuse staff or
patients. In the most serious of instances, these sanctions can result in withdrawing routine
treatment. Any assaults on staff while performing their duties are reported to the States of
Jersey Police.
Dennis Pimblott, a clinical nurse specialist who is qualified to teach Prevention and
Management of Violence and Aggression, is helping HCJ workers to understand why
someone might get agitated and what they can do to prevent things from escalating into
violence or aggression.
He said: “I hope that I will be able to build confidence and empower colleagues by helping
them to understand why a person might become agitated or aggressive. I also offer support
and debriefing for staff who’ve been involved in difficult situations.”
The Minister for Health and Social Services, Deputy Tom Binet, said: “This campaign is
aimed at highlighting the need to protect the dedicated and committed staff who work
tirelessly to save lives and care for those in need. It should go without saying that healthcare
workers should be able to go about their work without being subject to unacceptable
behaviour from any member of the public.
“Some patients, through no fault of their own, may act in an aggressive manner while
undergoing treatment. This campaign is not geared towards them. Rather it is focussed on
those individuals who act disgracefully while fully aware of their behaviour. I want to be very
clear, HCJ treats any assault against a member of staff very seriously and we have a zero-tolerance approach to any attacks or harassment."
gov.je