“It was an assault”: Union warns abuse is pushing staff to breaking point after Grimsby nurse attack

The Royal College of Nursing has condemned an incident in which a eggs were thrown at a nurse outside Grimsby Hospital, describing it as an assault and warning that abuse against nursing staff is escalating across the region.

Sarah Dodsworth, Regional Director for the Royal College of Nursing covering Northern Yorkshire and the Humber, said she was “beyond belief” when she heard what had happened.

“I was absolutely shocked, to be honest. I can’t believe that people would do that to a nurse who may even have been looking after their family that day.” she said.

Ms Dodsworth was adament that the incident should not be downplayed.

“Let’s be clear - what happened to that nurse was an assault, and it is absolutely abuse,” she said.

She says frustration within the healthcare system is increasingly being taken out on frontline staff, with long waits and difficulty accessing GP appointments contributing to rising aggression in hospitals.

“We’re getting calls from members who are distraught because they’re frightened to go to work,” she said.

“It used to be that you’d dread a busy Saturday night in A&E - now it feels like that every day, and not just in emergency departments."

She warned the impact on staff wellbeing is severe, contributing to burnout, anxiety and alarming mental health outcomes.

“We do know they’ve got one of the highest rates of death by suicide. That’s no coincidence -the way people are working is simply unsustainable.”

Ms Dodsworth says urgent investment in nursing is needed — alongside a cultural shift in how staff are treated.

“People need to take time to be kind and think about the impact their behaviour has on others. No nurse should feel unsafe doing their job.”