A doctor in his 50s was brutally stabbed with a large knife while treating a patient in the Accident and Emergency department of Hillingdon Hospital in West London. The attack occurred in the early hours of Tuesday, May 26, and the doctor survived despite the severity of the assault.
Metropolitan Police officers who were already at the hospital dealing with a separate incident responded swiftly, apprehending the 27-year-old suspect. He was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and grievous bodily harm. Witnesses reported that the suspect appeared to smirk during the attack and continued smiling as he was led away by police.
One witness described seeing the suspect attacking the doctor on the floor of a corridor, using what they described as a 'big knife'. The witness stated, 'He was smirking while he was stabbing him. The police were there in less than a minute when they got him and walked him past me, the bloke smiled at me.'
The attacker is believed to have mental health issues. The doctor received treatment for his wounds at the same hospital, and police confirmed that his condition 'has been deemed not to be life-threatening or life-changing.'
Rising Violence in A&E Departments
A spokesperson for The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: 'We continue to support and reassure our staff following this incident. The safety and well-being of our staff is our highest priority and any form of violence or aggression towards our teams is unacceptable.'
This incident highlights a troubling trend of increasing violence against healthcare workers. According to recent data, violence against A&E nursing staff in England has doubled in the five years up to 2024, with 4,054 acts of violence recorded against staff. This equates to just over 11 incidents per day.
The Metropolitan Police have urged anyone with information about the attack to call 101, quoting reference CAD 926/25May.
