The children of a security guard assaulted and seriously injured at Waikato Hospital last month say Allied Security and the Waikato District Health Board failed to keep her safe.
The female guard, who is contractually barred from speaking with media according to Stuff, suffered serious injuries after the assault by a patient in the early hours of May 15, including a broken arm and multiple facial fractures.
The guard's son, Carl Harney, was shocked to see her injuries.
"It was a pretty big shock. I didn’t know what to say to be honest.
"There are a lot of questions. She should have been safe, but she wasn’t. There should have been a lot more safety measures," he told the E tū union.
Her daughter, Tajuana Eltringham, was traumatised by the event, fleeing from the ward after seeing her injured mum.
"I burst into tears and walked out, it was a massive shock seeing my mum like that," she says.
According to Mr Harney, the blame lies with Allied Security and the Waikato DHB.
"There are a lot of the guards, not just my mum, who say they’re not safe. That guy shouldn’t have been on that ward.
"There are a lot of people you could blame, the person who did it obviously, but then Allied and the DHB after that."
Mr Harney says his mum is still recovering from the assault.
"She’s pretty tired most of the time. She’s pretty much lost her independence."
Allied Security Waikato was contacted by 1 NEWS when the assault took place but declined to comment.
A 35-year-old man has been charged over the assault.
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