Police hunting man accused of punching nurse in the face for giving his wife a Covid vaccine

Incident comes as healthcare workers face increasing hostility in the workplace amid coronavirus pandemic

Police in Canada are looking for a man after he allegedly physically assaulted a nurse for vaccinating his wife without the man’s consent, as reported by Reuters.

Martin Carrier, a spokesman for Sherbrooke Police, said on Wednesday that the female nurse had been punched and that authorities were working to hunt down the assailant. The incident occurred about 155km from Montreal, in a local pharmacy where the woman had been stationed to administer Covid-19 vaccinations to the community.

According to Mr Carrier, the man was shocked that his wife was vaccinated “without his authorisation” and then allegedly struck the nurse in response, Reuters reported. However, police are unclear whether the man was opposed to vaccinations in general or if his anger was over the lack of his consent to his wife’s inoculation.

Police in the Sherbrooke, Quebec area are asking for assistance from the public in locating the attacker. He is described as having short, dark hair, dark eyes, thick eyebrows, and a tattoo of a cross on his hand, according to Reuters.

Across the globe, nurses have been suffering from burnout as a result of the relentless fight against the pandemic. This is in conjunction with ongoing abuse faced by many who work in the medical community across the world, prompting nurses to write an open letter to end the abuse.

In the wake of the recent Canadian elections, anti-vaccine demonstrations have cropped up across the nation to the point of some school districts in British Columbia needing to lock down to avoid the protesters.

Many of the anti-vaccination protests in Canada have targeted hospitals and healthcare workers. These protests were condemned by Prime Minister Trudeau, who recently and narrowly won reelection. Mr Trudeau himself was a victim of anti-vaccine attackers when he was hit with gravel during a campaign rally. He has promised to crack down on these protesters and any corresponding violent action.

According to Reuters, Quebec Premier François Legault has said he will work with his government to pass legislation to stop the protestors from demonstrating near schools as soon as Thursday.

Mr Legault spoke to reporters Wednesday, telling them, “My patience has reached its limit,” and “I think it’s important to leave our children and patients in peace.”