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BBC<\/p>\nBBC<\/p>\n
Neil Guckian says the Western Trust would be ‘decimated’ without the backing of staff from across the globe<\/p>\n
Senior officials at the Western Health Trust have condemned recent “racist attacks” on staff members. <\/p>\n
In a joint statement, senior clinicians and managers criticised the racial abuse being experienced by employees across the trust.<\/p>\n
Chief executive Neil Guckian told a trust board meeting at the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen this week that he was “disheartened” to learn of the abuse some colleagues had faced.<\/p>\n
“We condemn this in the strongest possible terms,” Mr Guckian said.<\/p>\n
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Getty<\/p>\n
Western Trust chief executive Neil Guckian says he is ‘disheartened’ by racist attacks on colleagues<\/p>\n
International colleagues, he said, were integral to the trust’s delivery of services.<\/p>\n
Speaking to BBC Radio Foyle’s North West Today programme<\/a> on Friday, Mr Guckian said they had noticed a stark increase in racial abuse of staff in recent months.<\/p>\n He said the trust felt the need to issue a statement following a “particularly unsavoury incident” in Fermanagh, which is being investigated by the police.<\/p>\n He did not give details of the incident. <\/p>\n “The health and social services in Northern Ireland – the Western Trust particularly – would be decimated if we didn’t have our international staff,” Mr Guckian said.<\/p>\n He said they had attracted some of the best people in the world to work here.<\/p>\n “As an employer with one of the most diverse workforces west of the Bann, we do all we can to support our staff,” he said.<\/p>\n “We have a really active ethnically diverse staff network, but we are still learning about the difficulties they go through daily.”<\/p>\n Mr Guckian said recent incidents, including violent scenes in Ballymena which the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) branded “racist thuggery” in June,<\/a> and attacks on vehicles and homes<\/a> in September were deeply concerning.<\/p>\n “This is not just a Western Trust issue; this is a worldwide issue,” he said.<\/p>\n “It is really important for me that Northern Ireland does not get the name of being a racist country.”<\/p>\n He said that could be avoided if the community stands together. <\/p>\n Mr Guckian said it was “absolutely unacceptable” for people to exhibit racist behaviour in health and social care settings and, if they needed to, they would involve the police.<\/p>\n ‘Racism has no place in our hospitals’<\/p>\n In a statement, the chair of the trust’s ethnically diverse staff network, Roshin Rahman, also condemned recent incidents of racial abuse and said it affected staff well-being and morale.<\/p>\n “Our staff dedicate themselves to serving our patients and their families, often in the most challenging circumstances, and they deserve to feel safe and supported in our communities,” she said.<\/p>\n “Racism has no place in our hospitals or communities, and any racially motivated abuse or violence directed at staff and their families will not be tolerated.<\/p>\n “Such acts are damaging to our staff’s sense of safety, dignity and well-being, and they also affect our teams collectively.”<\/p>\n The trust has pledged to support staff affected by hate crime, including racial abuse, and said it would work alongside the police and other agencies to address this.<\/p>\n Other attacks<\/p>\n One of the burnt-out cars in Ballymena<\/p>\n It comes after another major employer in Northern Ireland condemned a racist attack on staff in Ballymena.<\/p>\n![\"Shows](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/3ef7f760-8a45-11f0-b391-6936825093bd.png.webp.webp\")
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