A paramedic with more than 37 years of service has been seriously hurt after she was attacked by a patient at Altnagelvin Hospital in Londonderry on Saturday evening. The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service described the incident as horrifying and said the experienced crew member was injured while she was helping a man who needed medical care.

Police said the attack happened at about quarter to six in the evening on Saturday, 7 November, and that a suspect has been identified. The ambulance service said the paramedic was hurt while responding to someone in need of medical assistance, and the incident has drawn condemnation from politicians and health leaders across Northern Ireland.

The incident began after the ambulance service received a call to help a male patient who was being taken by ambulance to the hospital, following treatment he had already received at the scene. The crew had been working to get him safely into the hospital building when the attack began without warning.

According to accounts of the incident, the paramedic was helping the man move from an ambulance stretcher into a chair when he suddenly became violent. He punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground and knocking her glasses from her face. A second paramedic tried to step in and protect her colleague, but she could not get into a position to help, and the man also tried to strike her before turning his attention back to the paramedic on the floor.

The attack continued while the injured paramedic lay on the ground, unable to defend herself, and the ambulance service said the whole episode lasted for a number of minutes before the incident was brought under control. The two crew members had been sent to help a patient in distress, and found themselves struggling to defend themselves against the very person they had been called to assist.

The paramedic suffered injuries to the back of her head, her neck, her face and her hands during the attack, and the ambulance service said she was also believed to have suffered concussion. The combination of injuries underlines how serious the assault was, and how long her recovery may take.

Jenny Keane, the chief executive of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, said she was horrified and outraged to hear of the assault. She singled out the fact that it was carried out by an adult man against a female paramedic while her other female colleagues did what they could to help her. Keane said the paramedic had spent a career of more than 37 years caring for her local community, and she warned that although her physical injuries might heal over the coming days and weeks, the psychological and emotional effect on her and on others involved could last far longer.

Keane said her staff must be free to go anywhere without the fear of being attacked, simply for delivering care and compassion to someone they have been called to assist, and she made clear that no part of the job should carry that risk, whatever the circumstances of the call that brought them there. She also called for those responsible for attacks on healthcare workers to face the full force of the law.

Sinéad McLaughlin, the Social Democratic and Labour Party assembly member for Foyle, who knows the paramedic personally, said she was absolutely appalled by what she called a vicious attack on a woman, and described the incident and the extent of the injuries as deeply upsetting. She said attacks on healthcare workers must never be treated as something that is simply accepted as part of the job, and called for a clear message that such violence will not be tolerated, with the safety of frontline workers made a priority.

Sinn Féin health spokesperson Philip McGuigan also condemned the attack, saying there must be zero tolerance of attacks or abuse directed against health and social care workers. He said health service workers go above and beyond to save lives and keep people safe, often working in very challenging circumstances, and that reports of the attack were deeply disturbing.

The case has renewed attention on the safety of ambulance crews and hospital staff, who are called to help people in distress and who, as this incident shows, can face violence in the very places where they are providing care. The ambulance service has previously highlighted the serious impact of violence and aggression on its workforce, and the thoughts of the wider community will be with the injured paramedic as she recovers.