"Hero" security officer talks down woman threatening to stab herself with knife

Anthony Evans kept a cool head as the incident unfolded on a ward at The Orchards at St James’ Hospital, Portsmouth. Bosses said Anthony showed care, compassion and exceptional communication skills when faced with the emergency in a hospital bedroom.

The female patient, who had just been sectioned under the Mental Health Act, had hidden a knife and managed to get it past ward staff. Brave Anthony, who has worked for Solent NHS Estates and Facilities for eight years, quietly assessed the situation from the doorway before entering the bedroom and striking up a conversation with the woman.

The former nightclub doorman then talked with her for nearly an hour, initially standing up but later sitting next to her on the bed. Eventually, he managed to convince her to give up the knife. Throughout the conversation, the knife was in her hand and, at any time, the situation could have escalated.

The entire incident was captured on camera via Anthony’s Bodycam. When his bosses later watched the footage, they couldn’t believe what they were witnessing.

Security manager Christian Mascia said: “Anthony was incredible. Without him stepping in and handling it in the way he did, the outcome could have been very different.”

Anthony’s line manager, Ryan Drury, assistant security manager, added: “Anthony has years of experience and has been on lots of courses, but the skills he used cannot be taught. The way he spoke to the patient had to be seen to be believed.”

Both bosses praised Anthony, 55, for managing a difficult and potentially life-threatening situation, going above and beyond his role to keep everyone safe.

He was kind to the patient at all times and even had her smiling and laughing by the time he left.

Now Anthony has been named colleague of the month at Solent NHS Trust, where he received a certificate, voucher and badge in recognition of his achievement.

Chief Executive Andrew Strevens described how he handled the emergency situation as “seriously impressive”.

“The panel decided unanimously that you were the worthy winner of this award,” he told Anthony.

“Your compassionate and caring demeanour and exceptional communication skills were fantastic throughout the ordeal.”

Modest Anthony said he didn’t think about his personal safety at the time but automatically began calmly talking to the patient while moving clinical staff out of danger.

“I just chatted to her as myself rather than as a security officer,” he said.

“I told her I understood how she was feeling and that there were people here who wanted to help her.”

Receiving his award, Anthony added: “I never expected this in a million years. Really it is for the whole team as we all work together.”

Mark Young, Deputy Director of Estates and Facilities, said: “Anthony handled this life-threatening situation with such skill; building rapport with a very agitated patient and helping to calm things down for all concerned.

“I am in awe of the work our security team do on the frontline to keep our patients, visitors and staff safe. It is great to see Anthony receive this very much deserved award. Although he says he was just doing his job, to everyone else at Solent he is definitely a hero.”