Staff treating patients has a right to work free from any form of threat, fear, abuse or violence. The GP practices in Gloucestershire have agreed a Zero Tolerance Policy. Depending on the gravity of the incident, a patient who is verbally rude or mildly abusive may be given a ‘Yellow Card’ as a final warning. Any further incident will result in a ‘Red Card’ with the patient being removed from the practice list.

Following a ‘Red Card’, the patient may face police charges resulting from the incident and will not be seen by any local GP practice. The patient will have to travel to Gloucester to the Vaughan Centre to receive any further GP services in a secure environment and will not receive home visits.