Man accused of assaulting Rhode Island Hospital nurse to have court hearing

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — A man accused of attacking a nurse at Rhode Island Hospital has a court hearing on Friday.

George Bower, 37, faces assault on a health care provider — a felony, and felony assault and battery.

Bower is accused of injuring a nurse who was working in an inpatient unit at Rhode Island Hospital on Sept. 8.

A spokesperson for Lifespan said at the time that the agency was “providing assistance and support to our employees who witnessed the traumatic event.”

On Thursday, Lifespan launched a safety campaign for healthcare professionals in the workplace.

A sign at Hasbro Children’s Hospital for the announcement of the new campaign #ScottStrong which advocates for the safety of healthcare workers. (WLNE)

The campaign, #ScottStrong, is named in honor of the nurse recovering from the incident.

The goal is to promote awareness in order to end workplace violence against healthcare workers.

“Sadly this could have been any healthcare worker in any hospital,” said Senior Vice President of the Hospital Association of Rhode Island, Lisa Tomasso.

Bower is expected to appear for a hearing in Providence District Court.

He has a status conference set for Nov. 6.