Nurse assaulted in emergency department of Kilkenny hospital
Assaulting an emergency department nurse has resulted in a Kilkenny woman being ordered to enter a peace bond, by the District Court.
Patrica Ryan, 5 Station Avenue, Ballyragget, contested a charge of assaulting a nurse at St Luke’s hospital on March 2, 2025.
Following a hearing before Judge Patricia Cronin, Ms Ryan was convicted.
The nurse gave evidence in court that she was working in the resuscitation (resus) room at the emergency department, during a night shift.
She went to check on a patient and, when she bent down to pick something up off the floor, the woman grabbed her and wouldn’t let go. Two hospital porters had to separate the women.
The nurse said the patient had been agitated when she first entered the room.
When the woman grabbed her, the nurse said, she grabbed her left breast, and the force of it removed her underwear, under her uniform.
The nurse said she was upset afterwards. She had worked in emergency departments for 30 years before this. “People don’t attack nurses, we are there to help people,” she said.
She received medical attention and was told to go off duty and make a report to gardaí. She was in severe pain for weeks and was unable to return to work for eight months.
Answering questions from solicitor Chris Hogan, the nurse said that, on the night, she did not know why Ms Ryan had been admitted to the hospital – just that Ms Ryan was distressed and had been placed in the resus room, because she had been causing a disturbance in the main department, shouting and screaming.
As the nurse had no access to Ms Ryan’s medical records, she did not know what occurred to Ms Ryan after this incident.
Mr Hogan said his client had been going through a severe mental health crisis and had tried to take her own life. She was admitted to intensive care, where she spent three days on a ventilator and two days unconscious. He said no-one should be assaulted.
The injured party said no nurse should be assaulted at work.
Mr Hogan said his client was later admitted to the Department of Psychiatry (DOP), and the nurse said she was glad the woman got some help.
When the woman was in the resus room, the nurse said, she was alert, oriented and had full knowledge of what she was doing.
Garda Daniel Troy investigated the incident. He spoke to the nurse on March 4 and took a statement from Ms Ryan on June 12.
In her statement, Ms Ryan said she did not remember assaulting anyone and didn’t remember being transferred to the DOP.
Ms Ryan’s sister in law gave sworn testimony in court that the defendant suffered from mental health difficulties and regularly attended the DOP.
Mr Hogan said his client had been going through an intense mental and physical crisis, and it could not be said she intended to assault the nurse.
Judge Patricia Cronin noted all the evidence and said the court was satisfied an assault had been committed.
This was not something that should happen in a hospital setting, the judge said. People go in for help and people working there are under severe pressure and should not be subjected to an assault.
She said this was not a case where a Probation Report or Community Service Order was appropriate. She ordered Ms Ryan to enter into a bond to keep the peace for a period of 12 months. Recognisance was fixed in the event of an appeal.