THERE is no excuse for assaults on nurses and ­midwives who are working in our hospitals to provide care for people.

The number of incidents is staggering as it is alarming, and with many more going unreported, is nothing short of a disgrace.

The numbers are not the same for other health professionals, so why should our nursing and midwifery staff be subjected to these attacks, whether physical or verbal.

There are laws to protect emergency service workers from assault and the full force of the justice system should be used to ensure no-one is able to get away with this behaviour.

No-one should expect to be assaulted going about their working day, but sadly that is exactly what some in the NHS are expecting to happen at some point in their working life.

It is an unacceptable irony that the very people who are there to provide professional care for people when they are in need of it, should be treated with violence and abuse disproportionately to other types of workers.

These cases need to be reported and action must be taken, both by health bosses and by police and the courts to eradicate it.

We depend on our nurses and midwives and they deserve better.