Aggressive patients and families are lashing out at doctors and nurses, with reports that domestic violence is spilling over into the state's hospitals.
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There were 5514 acts of aggression towards Queensland Health staff last financial year — an increase of almost 50 per cent from two years earlier.
Disturbingly, violence was meted out even against staff caring for the state's most vulnerable children, with reported incidents at Children's Health Queensland more than doubling to 99 last year.
Attacks also spiked on the Gold Coast, at Metro South, the Sunshine Coast and Townsville.
In Metro North and Metro South, which alone cover a large area of Brisbane and outer areas, there were 32 acts of aggression every week of the year.
An image released by Metro North Health has revealed dozens of weapons seized by staff, including knives, scissors and a screwdriver.
Queensland Nurses and Midwives' Union secretary Beth Mohle said there was anecdotal evidence that domestic and family violence was spilling over into the health system.
"No level of violence is acceptable in our hospitals and health services," she said.
Ms Mohle said security officers had received specialised training from the Queensland Police Service to manage violence.
"However, nurses and midwives know there are countless other scenarios, including presentations of dementia, high-stress situations or patients whose health is compromised, where words are more effective than increased security," she said.
LNP leader Deb Frecklington said the statistics were damning and something needed to be done to address the staggering violence.
"Nurses and doctors go to work to save lives and help people recover from illness and injury in our hospitals every year," she said.
"They don't deserve to be treated like punching bags."
Opposition health spokeswoman Ros Bates said that, speaking as a former emergency department nurse, medics should never go to work in fear of being attacked.
A Queensland Health spokesman said the true rates of violence were traditionally difficult to measure, given that many incidents could go unreported.
But the spokesman said that, since 2016, Queensland Health had implemented several measures to encourage staff to report incidents.
"As a direct result of those efforts, we are seeing a marked increase in staff reporting," he said.
"This does not necessarily mean there has been a rise in assaults against staff.
"Through an increase of reporting, we are much better able to support our staff who have been assaulted on the job, and better able to deal with the community-wide issue of violence that too often spills over into our hospital network."
The spokesman said security officers at 20 hospitals across Queensland now had body-worn cameras, which could act as a deterrent and help police when it came to prosecuting offenders.
Other initiatives to increase safety at hospitals included more CCTV cameras, more security officers, support for staff, de-escalation training, an easier reporting process and flagging frequently aggressive patients and visitors.
