Hawke's Bay DHB staff get schooled in safety around dogs

Signs to look pout for in a dog to prevent being attacked. Photo / Supplied.

Hawke's Bay District Health Board staff are being taught practical ways to avoid being bitten by dogs.

HBDHB executive director people and quality Kate Coley said visiting patients where dogs also lived was unavoidable for many of the DHB staff.

Earlier this year a HBDHB nurse was attacked by a dog while visiting a patient.

She suffered serious deep puncture wounds and bruising to her right buttock, the biggest being 2cm long and 2.5cm deep.

Since the attack the nurse's wounds "had to be dressed every day", she was unable to drive and that she felt "quite traumatised as a result of the attack".

The incident has been the only one involving a HBDHB staff member being bitten.

To ensure it never happens again and better prepare staff the health board's safety and wellbeing team approached the Napier and Hastings councils' dog control teams for training to give them practical ways to keep themselves safe during home visits.

The sessions run a couple of times every month, and so far, eight hour-long sessions across the two districts have been held over four weeks, at varying times to ensure as many staff as possible could attend.

So far 76 people had taken advantage of the training with that number expected to grow to 100 by the end of the year.

At a Hastings session, Hastings District Council animal control officers Kelly King and Dave Morris said their advice really was "common sense", but that could be easy to forget during an encounter with an aggressive dog.

The advice included checking for signs of a dog (chew toys, dog bowls etc) before entering a property and, if a dog looked to be tied up, gauging how long the lead is, carrying a heavy folder or bag to hold in front of the animal and more.

"The dog is doing its job by protecting its family and they live with it all the time. That does not mean it will be safe with you," King said.

The presentation also included an easy-to-follow guide on reading a dog's body language.

Hawke's Bay District Health Board clinical nurse specialist transplant co-ordinator Merryn Jones attended the workshop and said she came away from it "knowing what to do, as much as what not to do".

"My take-home is that taking preventative action is the best approach.

"The information on what to do if you are caught out was good too. If you encounter an aggressive dog, use your bag, folder or even a hat to put between you and the dog – and never turn your back on it."

Hastings District Council regulatory solutions manager John Payne, who has Principles of Canine Behaviour qualifications, said Council offered the free Dog Bite Prevention Programme to "any group that wants to benefit from it".