With pubs set to reopen in Wales from Monday and the number of assaults on emergency workers rising, a new campaign is calling on the public to support blue light workers.

With Us Not Against Us has been launched following attacks on workers like ‘Ann’ in Porthmadog.

In May 2019, ‘Ann’, an EMT was assaulted by a patient, who was later jailed for six months.

The mother-of-three said: “I was pinned to the corner of the inside of the ambulance by a patient who was drunk, and my colleague and a member of the public had to drag him off me.

“He was shouting in my face, kicking me and verbally abusing me.

“In the meantime, an urgent ‘Red’ call came in for a baby who had taken ill so we had to leave.

“I didn’t think it had affected me at the time, but a couple of weeks later, when another patient became irate, I took myself off to the ambulance and burst into tears.

“I saw him in the street when he got out of prison and my heart was in my chest.

“It’s two years on now, but what happened has stayed with me.

“The first thing I do when I go into a patient’s house now is look for the exits.”

New data shows more than 4,240 assaults were committed against emergency workers, including police, fire and ambulance crews, in the period April 2019 – November 2020, representing a monthly average increase from 202 in 2019 to 222 in 2020, or 10 per cent.

There were 629 (15 per cent) assaults on Welsh Ambulance Service staff over the 20-month period, from paramedics to control room staff.

Assaults range from kicking, punching and head-butting, to spitting, slapping, biting and verbal abuse.

Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: “Our ambulance crews are there to help people, but they can’t fight for someone’s life if they’re fighting for theirs.

“Our crews might have no choice but to leave a scene if their personal safety is compromised, and this isn’t helpful for anyone, least of all the patient.

“A split-second act of violence can have a devastating and long-term impact on our staff, both physically and emotionally.

“The debt of gratitude we owe to our emergency workers has never been greater, so now more than ever, we’re asking the public to work with us, not against us.”

Two thirds of the assaults (66 per cent) over the 20-month period were committed against police officers, a third of which resulted in injury.

Under the Assault on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act, the definition of an emergency worker includes police, fire and ambulance staff, as well as prison staff, search and rescue workers and NHS workers.