Tewksbury State Hospital worker violently assaulted in latest attack at facility, police say

A mental health worker was attacked at Tewksbury State Hospital Friday morning, the latest in a series of assaults there, according to police.

Tewksbury Police Chief Ryan Columbus said officers were called in to help the staff member, "who was violently assaulted in an unprovoked attack inside the hospital."

The adult male patient, whom Columbus said "has an extensive violent criminal history," is being charged with assault and battery on a health care worker. 

"A preliminary investigation determined that the patient went up to the nurses' station and was acting erratically," Columbus said. "When one of the mental health workers approached him, the patient stood in a fighting position and struck the employee in the face twice."   

This is the third incident at the hospital since the state's Department of Public Health (DPH) decided to take away non-lethal restraints and pepper gel from the hospital's security staff. It's not clear yet if that was a factor in Friday's attack.

"We don't go to work every day looking to be concerned for our safety," Tewksbury Hospital nurse Ryan Wilkins said. 

Wilkins says he and coworkers are thinking about leaving their jobs after the violent incidents. "It's heartbreaking to see what's going on right now because we are going to lose some really good people," Wilkins said.  

The police chief, the town's select board and hospital staff have all condemned the decision and asked the state to reverse course.

Tewksbury State Hospital is a state-run facility with a large mental health patient population.  

Back in 2023, a WBZ-TV I-Team investigation found that Tewksbury Police responded to about 1,000 calls a year at the hospital.

Following the report, there were major changes. The hospital's public safety officers were trained to use pepper gel, batons, and handcuffs.

However, as the I-Team reported earlier this month, the Department of Public Health followed through on a controversial plan on April 2 and took that equipment away from the hospital's security officers.

In a notice to staff at the hospital, the state said it's working "to balance security and protection with healing and therapy."

"The safety of patients, staff and the Tewksbury community is our top priority," a spokesperson for the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security said in a statement. "We appreciate our partnership and ongoing discussions with town officials, Tewksbury State Hospital leaders, and unions to make sure staff have an appropriate range of tools available to keep themselves and others safe."

Tewksbury, Massachusetts is 24 miles north of Boston.