Seniors Housing & Healthcare Trends

NEW YORK: A healthcare worker has won a payout of $357,000 over psychological injuries stemming from an assault in the workplace.

In Lance Douglas Armstrong Waters v the State of Queensland, Morzone QC DCJ of the District Court of Queensland considered whether:

• the employer failed in its duty of care
• the employer failed to provide an appropriate response
• the employer was negligent
• the worker was entitled to damages

The worker, Lance Douglas Armstrong Waters, worked as a registered nurse for the employer, the State of Queensland. On 19 January 2014 the worker was working at Cairns Base Hospital when he was the victim of an assault. He developed psychological and physical injuries as a result.

The worker sought damages from the employer.

On the night of the incident the worker was assigned to the ‘fast track’ area of the emergency room at the hospital. He notified two patients who were waiting that they would be next in line. The patients were lying down on the waiting room seats with blankets over them, and the worker removed these blankets to help them wake up. Shortly after, the worker returned and the patients had pulled the blankets over themselves again.

The worker removed the blankets again, and one of the patients swung his fist at the worker. The pair fell to the floor. The worker was able to restrain the patient and remove him to the area where hospital security staff were.

The worker reported the incident immediately. The worker stated that his supervisors yelled at him and reprimanded him for his actions. The worker stated he finished up his shift, which ended shortly after, and went home. The next day he presented himself at the emergency room’s triage, having suffered a psychological reaction to the incident. He filed a WorkCover claim that day.

There were some differences between the worker’s account of the event and the CCTV footage. The worker stated that he had tried to wake the patients, shaking one by the foot before lifting the blanket from over his face. The CCTV footage showed the worker briskly sweeping the blankets from the patients. The worker stated that the patient had acted swiftly in attacking him, but the footage showed the patient, who was inebriated, moving slowly. The worker’s supervisors stated they had not reacted angrily to the incident.

The worker argued that the employer was negligent not only in failing to prevent the incident but in its staff failing to treat him with proper care after the incident. The worker argued that the latter failure contributed to his development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

In deciding the case, Morzone reviewed the CCTV footage and noted that although it showed a slightly different version of events, the differences were likely to be due to the worker’s intense feelings during the event rather than deliberate alterations. Morzone noted that the worker had shown an emotional response at the time of the incident and presented with early signs of post-traumatic stress, but his superiors had failed to identify these signs or react appropriately. Morzone agreed with the worker that the employer failed to prevent his development of PTSD and ordered the employer to pay $357,073.49 in damages plus interest.