AMBULANCE workers have been attacked, verbally abused or threatened while doing their job in 200 reported cases in the last year.

A campaign called 'Under Attack' has now been launched by West Midlands Ambulance Service, which is responsible for Worcestershire and Herefordshire, to try and highlight the problems faced by operational medics, ambulance bosses and trade union leaders who are now calling for tougher sentences for those people who attack and abuse ambulance staff.

They have also released a graphic, anonymous account of an attack on a paramedic to illustrate the problem.

The paramedic said: “Whilst the crew were trying to assess him he became quite agitated. He started by swatting our hands away but then rapidly became very verbally aggressive, very abusive. He assaulted one of the crew members who were on the ambulance, knocking them to the floor causing him an arm injury. He grabbed hold of my shirt. I tried to push him away … at which point he started to punch me to the head.”

For more information visit www.officialwmas.wordpress.com or follow the progress of the campaign on Twitter and Facebook:@officialwmas