Two nurses were assaulted in separate incidents Dec. 18 at Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I., part of Lifespan, hospital and police confirmed to Becker's.
GoLocal was first to report the incidents in a Dec. 18 article. The publication also spoke with leaders in the nursing community for a follow-up Dec. 19 article.
The first incident occurred at approximately 12:05 a.m., Providence Department of Public Safety Public Information Officer Lindsay Lague said in a statement shared with Becker's on Dec. 18. Police said Zharia Crawford, 27, is suspected of assaulting a nurse.
The suspect "checked in the hospital for a toothache but was not admitted," police said. "While trying to provide care, Crawford was screaming at [the] victim and shoved [the] victim in the chest with one hand, then tried to punch [the] victim, but did not strike him. Crawford was turned over for charging."
The second incident occurred at approximately 12:55 a.m., according to the police. Police said Nicole Rocha, 42, allegedly assaulted a nurse.
Ms. Rocha "was admitted in the hospital for detox," police said. "[The] victim stated Rocha got off the stretcher and began to walk away; Rocha was told to lay back down. Rocha became agitated, yelled racist epithets then slapped [the] victim in the left side of her face with an open hand. Rocha was turned over for charging."
Kathleen Hart, a spokesperson for Providence-based Lifespan, confirmed the two separate incidents to Becker's via email on Dec. 20. No further comment or information was provided.
Read the initial GoLocal report about the incidents here.
Editor's note: This story was updated on Dec. 23. Becker's will continue to update this story if more information becomes available.