The importance of credible evidence..

I was pleased to see the RCN's General Secretary on BBC Breakfast news yesterday morning talking about the need for better evidence to be captured whenever a verbal or physical assault occurs. He was talking in the main about a new survey conducted by the RCN which finds a simply staggering 35% of lone working nurses having been subjected to physical attack or abuse.

It is my experience also that the Police and the courts are powerless to act unless credible evidence exists. Writing a report on an incident, particular a verbal incident is not enough to enable action to be taken. The Police need hard evidence.

The NHS Counter Fraud & Security Management Service also talk about the need for more and better reporting of incidents and the evidence required to enable them to support an NHS Trust in taking action.

Connexion2 and its Identicom won the first ever ACPO sponsored award at the recent IFSEC 2007 event in Birmingham because of the work we have done to ensure Identicom meets and exceeds ACPO guidelines on mobile panic alarms. Part of this was the use of discreet audio from the Identicom which is captured by a monitoring centre specifically to provide credible evidence in support of the worker and their employer. NOW, with such credible evidence action can be taken against those being verbally or physically abusive.

I would urge all employers reading this to consider the benefits of capturing credible audio evidence. Not only will it improve your lone worker's life but put you in a better position to take positive action and improve your relationship with the Police. Ultimately, this will all save you costs and reduce your lone worker risks.