‘Extremely agitated’ patient pulls gun on GP

Police are calling for witnesses to come forward after a patient pulled a gun on a Nowra GP before being fatally shot by authorities.
 
New South Wales Police was called to the South Coast clinic around 1.00 pm on Wednesday, following urgent calls from staff still inside the Junction Street practice.
 
Dozens of emergency vehicles swarmed to the scene after staff reported the 34-year-old patient had produced a firearm while speaking with his GP.
 
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Peter Cotter said the man was known to the medical centre and its staff.
 
‘During conversations with the doctor, the man has become extremely agitated and spoke of many alarming things,’ he said.
 
‘During that conversation and unprovoked, he produced the firearm.
 
‘Throughout the next little while, there are about four people who were able to make their escape from inside the doctor’s surgery which left the gunman alone.’
 
Authorities confirmed the man was known to police through ‘psychological medical episodes which have required our intervention’.
 
RACGP President Dr Nicole Higgins described the incident as ‘traumatic and triggering’.
 
‘Our hearts go out to our colleagues and their teams who’ve been affected by this,’ she told newsGP.
 
‘When you’re in a situation like this it’s terrifying. You can have systems and processes and alarms in place, but these things can escalate quickly and unexpectedly.
 
‘This is something that happens extremely rarely, but no doctor or their team should ever be injured while they’re in their workplace.’
 
Prior to the shooting, Assistant Commissioner Cotter said police continued their negotiations with the gunman through the centre’s open doors and windows after the GP and staff members had escaped.
 
‘Nearly two hours later, the man emerged, and police and he engaged in further conversation but at this stage the man produced the gun and brandished it at police,’ he said.
 
‘Police at the time were holding a ballistic shield, that ballistic shield was dropped during this initial confrontation and the police retreated.
 
‘The man picked up the shield, further brandished the gun, raising it in the air and raising it at police and a number of shots were fired by police in the direction of the man.’
 
The man died at the scene and no other injuries were reported.
 
Dr Higgins encouraged GPs to reach out to the college if they need help in the aftermath of this incident.
 
‘This is a rarity in our practices, but we need to make sure that we have the systems and processes in place to protect our staff and our doctors as much as we can,’ she said.
 
‘Reach out, talk to your colleagues, and the RACGP is here to support you.
 
‘Then in the aftermath of this, ensure your colleagues are supported as they return to work.’
 
Mental health consultations are one of the most common for GPs across Australia, making up around 38% of all bookings each week.
 
The proportion of GPs reporting psychological factors as the main reason for patient presentation also continues to grow, up from 61% in 2017 to 72% last year.
 
Dr Higgins said that while this was a one-off tragedy, most GPs will have experienced situations in their consulting rooms or practices which have made them uncomfortable.
 
‘It makes it really difficult for practices and teams to be able to show that we can look after our staff when we have patients behaving poorly,’ she said.
 
‘What we need to remember is the richness and quality of the relationships we have with our patients who come from all walks of life and are undergoing different challenges.’
 
Police say several people were in the vicinity who may have witnessed the incident and are calling for anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.
 
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