Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Number of homes blacklisted by ambulance chiefs ‘staggering’

Kim Cessford, Courier - 13.02.12 - FOR FILE - pictured is the wording on the back of a Ambulance Technician attending an incident
Kim Cessford, Courier - 13.02.12 - FOR FILE - pictured is the wording on the back of a Ambulance Technician attending an incident

A total of 150 homes across Tayside, Fife and Forth Valley are blacklisted by ambulance chiefs, who will not allow their staff to enter without police protection.

The statistics were described as “staggering” by one MSP, who insisted they are evidence of a “real problem” with crime and disorder.

Across Scotland 593 addresses have been blacklisted because of previous attacks or threats on paramedics an increase of more than 150 from this time last year.

It means even in the most serious of emergencies, ambulance staff cannot enter the properties unless police officers are present.

The statistics, obtained through freedom of information legislation, reveal NHS Lothian had the most ‘red-flagged’ addresses in Scotland, with 162. Fife has 68. Tayside and Forth Valley each have 41 “no-go” addresses.

Jackson Carlaw is health spokesman and deputy leader of the Scottish Conservatives.

“This is a disgraceful situation, and those who have caused this only have themselves to blame if they lose out on medical treatment in the future,” he said.

“It shows, despite SNP claims, we still have a real problem with crime and disorder in Scotland, and it needs to be clamped down on.”

When contacted by The Courier, a Scottish Government spokesman said: “Violence against NHS staff is completely unacceptable and will not go unpunished.

“However, crime is at a 37-year low in Scotland and this represents a very small proportion of around 2.5 million residences across the country.

“We take the safety of our NHS staff very seriously, that is why they have the support of their police colleagues. More people than ever before are being convicted under the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act, with the penalty up to 12 months’ imprisonment, a £10,000 fine or both.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “All crews are given training in management of aggression and how to undertake a full risk assessment on arrival at scene to establish if there is any potential danger.

“If any ambulance crews feel their safety may be compromised, they are instructed to hold nearby the scene and await support from the police, or additional ambulance crews.

“As a further protective measure, addresses where there have been previous incidents of violence or threatening behaviour towards staff are flagged in control rooms,” he added.