Staff in our hospitals and clinics are already up against it. They are working long hours in often extremely stressful environments. If they are not providing urgent care and attention to patients in their time of need, they are performing the countless other tasks required to keep our hospitals open.
And all at a time when demand has never been higher for their services. Coronavirus was an unbearable load to place on the back of our NHS when it was already struggling to stand upright.
Yet the health service did not collapse, thanks to collective efforts of staff. So it’s simply unfathomable to hear of the extent of abuse that NHS workers face doing their jobs.
Almost 100,000 complaints of assault, intimidation or harassment have been logged in the last five years. And those are only the incidents that have been officially recorded.
Countless other examples will have been left unchecked by staff who are just trying to get on with their jobs. Most people will have gone through their own stressful experience in a hospital.
Whether it’s a sudden dash to visit a dying loved one, or the nervousness while waiting for a life-changing operation. But staff are there to help and are trying their best in often challenging circumstances.
Taking anger or frustration out on NHS workers is simply unacceptable. Those who go as far as to break the law deserve punishment. Hospitals must be safe spaces for staff as well as for patients.
Beware of crypto
Social media is filled with people flogging get-rich-quick scams. And cryptocurrency has become one of the most common of all. Many people will have heard of Bitcoin but it’s just one of countless online currencies that are traded online far away from the grip of traditional banks.
While fans claim that crypto is the future of finance, too often the schemes are run by chancers and crooks. Oversight is minimal and, if things go wrong, there’s a strong chance of deposits simply vanishing.
The Record reports today on the upsetting stories of several Scots who have been burned by their experience of cryptocurrency trading. When the going is good, no one has any complaints.
But if your sole point of contact goes quiet, there is little customers can do. It’s a cautionary tale about new technology with an old message at its heart. If something is too good to be true, it probably is.
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