A pregnant ambulance officer in Australia has suffered a vicious assault at the hands of a drug-addled patient, reportedly being punched in the stomach and head shortly after bringing them back from the brink of death.
Attack After Saving Life
Paramedics in Australia were waiting to offload a woman at a Melbourne hospital after she was revived by first responders following a drug overdose on Sunday night, May 10, when the patient attacked. The paramedic, identified by Ambulance Victoria only as 'Sally', was kicked in the head and stomach, despite telling the patient-turned-attacker she was 12 weeks pregnant.
She continued to treat her attacker for another 40 minutes at the hospital as no beds were free and staff weren't available to take over the violent patient's care. Ambulance Victoria has confirmed Sally and her unborn child were both unharmed in the attack, but officials from the state health agency said violent assaults like Sally's are all too common.
Union Expresses Concern
As per Victorian Ambulance Union secretary Danny Hill, Sally is now too scared to return to work after the assault on Monday. "Her desire had been to continue working for many more months on-road, but she's had to make the decision for her own health and the health of her unborn child to come off-road because we just can't guarantee her safety," he told the Australian press on Tuesday.
Recent Similar Incidents
The attack in Melbourne on Monday comes mere weeks after a horror incident that saw a man charged with attempted murder after he launched an unprovoked attack on another on-duty paramedic in Victoria. The Ambulance Victoria paramedic named Sam was allegedly stabbed in Melbourne while he was ordering a coffee at around 11am on April 30. A man, aged 32, has since been charged with attempted murder.
CEO Condemns Violence
Ambulance Victoria chief executive Jordan Emery has since dubbed attacks on ambulance officers as "absolutely disgraceful." "It continues across all Australian jurisdictions, and it must stop now," he said. "In fact, over the last week, one of my paramedics has been bitten, another one has been shoved, and another paramedic has had scissors pulled on them. What it reflects is an ongoing and appalling pattern of violence towards paramedics and first responders who go about providing care to Victorians in their time of need each and every day."
Rising Attacks in the UK
Attacks on ambulance staff in the UK reached record levels in 2025, with more than 22,500 separate recorded incidents of violence, aggression, and abuse against paramedics reported in the 2024-25 financial year; an increase of 15 per cent compared to the year prior. That's an average of 62 paramedics being abused or attacked every day.
