DOZENS of attacks have been launched on staff at Herefordshire's hospitals in recent months.

The figures come after it was reported that there has been a rise in violence against Wye Valley NHS Trust staff.

 Trust board minutes published in March said the trust now has CCTV linked to the police station and body-worn cameras are being worn by some staff, while the trust is also working with police and other partner organisations to reduce levels of violence and aggression.

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And now board papers published in April have revealed just how many attacks there have been on staff.

The trust said, in response to a question from a member of the public, that there had been 71 verbal assaults on trust staff in the six months to March, with 66 physical assaults on staff in the same period.

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The trust said it had sent seven warning letters to protagonists involved in these staff attacks, but was unable to say at this time how many protagonists had been arrested or sent warning letters by police, with this information requested from police.

They were also unable to say how many had been prosecuted or were awaiting trial for assaulting staff over the period, with this information also requested from police.

The Chairman reiterated that it is totally unacceptable for any member of the public to be aggressive towards any member of staff, the minutes said.