UNIFORMED police officers were last night drafted in to patrol Perth Royal Infirmary after a nurse was viciously attacked in a busy hospital ward by an intruder.

The unprecedented security measures, which also involve additional porters being used to act as escorts for staff and patients at the hospital, were brought into force after the Royal College of Nursing called for an urgent review of security at the hospital following the assault.

Personal alarms have been issued to employees throughout the hospital, and staff who witnessed the assault are being offered counselling services by the hospital authorities.

The assailant had been seen prowling the grounds of the hospital, both shortly before the unprovoked assault and the night before he struck.

His 40-year-old female victim was not seriously hurt but was left badly shaken by the midnight attack on Thursday night. Police have refused to comment on reports that she was threatened with a knife.

Colin Poolman, the Edinburgh-based regional officer of the RCN, condemned the assault and called on the Tayside University Hospitals Trust to take urgent action to protect infirmary staff.

He said: “We are extremely concerned about the attack on a nurse at Perth Royal Infirmary and are calling on the trust to review their security arrangements as a matter of urgency. This is another dreadful illustration of how vulnerable nurses are to violent attack.

“Everything possible needs to be done to ensure the safety of all staff throughout the NHS.”

Mr Poolman said that a survey, carried out last year into violent incidents involving nurses, had shown that four in ten members of the RCN in Scotland had either been harassed or assaulted by patients or their families in the 12 months prior to the survey.

Around one in three nurses had also reported being the victims of a physical assault at work at some stage in their careers.

Gerry Marr, the chief executive of Tayside University Hospitals Trust, said last night: “The safety of all staff and patients is paramount to NHS Tayside and we are viewing this incident as a matter of utmost importance.

“We are currently carrying out our own investigation into the incident at PRI and, as part of this, we will be reviewing our current security measures.”

Mr Marr added: “We try to ensure all our premises are as secure as possible while still being accessible to the public.”

Detective Chief Inspector Kenny Sinclair, who is leading the hunt for the intruder, said: “This was a vicious, unprovoked attack on a member of the nursing staff, whilst she was carrying out her duties in a busy hospital ward. It is vitally important that we catch the man responsible as soon as possible.

“Although not seriously injured, the 40-year-old victim of the attack was badly shaken by the ordeal, as were a number of her colleagues.”

DCI Sinclair revealed: “It is possible that this man was prowling around the hospital grounds for some time prior to the attack and, indeed, the same man may have been acting suspiciously in and around the hospital on Wednesday evening.”

The man being sought is described as white, aged 25 to 30, of slim build and around 6ft tall. He has gaunt features and dark brown, close-shaven hair and may have a tattoo on the right side of his neck, as well as tattoos on his knuckles.