Statistics revealed by the government show there were on average more than four code blacks at Canberra Hospital - internal emergencies that threaten personal safety- every day in the first six months of the year.

Answers to questions on notice in the ACT Assembly showed there were 787 code blacks in six months to July 2018, on track to increase from the previous year by about 13 per cent.

In 2017 there were 1398 code blacks recorded.

Meanwhile infrastructure and other internal emergencies - code yellows - were on track to double this year, based on statistics from the first half of the year.

In 2017 there were 30 code yellows, but in the first half of 2018 there had already been 28 codes declared.

Code yellows are triggered by internal emergencies including infrastructure and utilities issues.

A Canberra Health Services spokesman said the increase in code yellows could be attributed to issues with facilities/utilities and ICT "to be expected in a busy 24/7 hospital campus".

Recent known infrastructure issues have included ongoing plumbing issues in the pediatric unit which has seen part of the ward closed down for a number of months.

It comes after significant safety concerns were raised by the Health Services Union - relating mostly to the emergency department - and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, which has have been particularly concerned about working conditions in the adult mental health unit.

ACT Nursing and Midwifery Federation secretary Matthew Daniel said the code black data painted a picture of the issues faced by nurses and midwives on a daily basis.

"It might be (patients) withdrawing from illicit drugs, it might a case of behaviours escalating because they're not in the right location of the hospital that best meets their needs," he said.

Mr Daniel said on paper, it appeared the union's concerns about staff safety were being acted on.

"What we will need, to see success, will be determining the extent the executive see their role to make staff safety as a priority," he said.

"It's all good and well to talk about safety for staff, it's a whole other matter to actually make sure staff are kept safe."

A Canberra Health Services spokesman said staff worked hard to keep the community well and it was important to remind the public to treat members of the hospital with respect at all times.

"There is no way to predict when or why someone will commit an act of violence, aggression or abuse against our staff. However, all such acts are unacceptable," he said.

"Patient and staff safety in our health service is extremely important, and everyone has a right to feel safe within our hospital and health services.

"All alarms are treated as true alarms until investigated. This system characteristic means that the data cannot be separated by false or true alarms."

The spokesman said the hospital also used a number of strategies to help prevent code blacks, including monitoring of CCTV and the presence of security officers in certain areas of the hospital to deter aggressive behaviour.

"While we can never fully remove this risk, the government also recognises the need to continually review our policies and procedures to make Canberra Health Services facilities as safe as they can be for all staff and patients," he said.

"Canberra Health Services CEO Bernadette McDonald has made addressing the issue of occupational violence a high priority.

"She has established and is chairing a working group to develop strategies to address occupational violence in all its forms."

Liberal spokeswoman for health Vicki Dunne claimed infrastructure emergencies could be putting patient lives at risk.

“Under the current trajectory, we will have double the number of infrastructure emergencies in the hospital this calendar year compared to last year," she said.

"We know that there has been a staggering number of assaults against nurses, particularly in high risk areas.

“The Labor-Greens government has a moral and legal obligation to ensure the safety of nurses.

“I have yet to be convinced that they take this commitment seriously.”