The Labour Court has recommended that Harney reverse her previous position and introduce a compensation scheme covering physical and psychological injuries, and that the new scheme should include the 40 claims already in the pipeline.

Psychiatric nurses, members of Siptu and the PNA, claim attacks are now running at over 1,200 a year. "Our members have suffered beatings, stabbings, head-butts, fractured noses and bite marks, " said the PNA's Des Kavanagh. "Weapons used include blood-filled syringes, chairs and pool cues."

In 2002, the then Health Minister, Micheal Martin, promised psychiatric nurses a 'no fault' compensation scheme covering psychological trauma as well as physical injuries and that the scheme be backdated three years.

But in 2005, following advice from the AG, Harney said she would not introduce Martin's scheme, but would instead offer an insurance-based scheme with no retrospection which would compensate for physical injuries only and not for any psychological trauma.

However, at a hearing last week, Ray McGee, deputy chair of the Labour Court, reversed Harney's decision after the Court was denied access to the AG's opinion for reasons of "confidentiality".

"The Court has heard expert opinion . . . that the validity or otherwise of psychological trauma arising directly from such an assault, as opposed to the likelihood of "malingering", is measurable by psychiatric professionals, " McGee said.

Siptu's national nursing organiser, Louise O'Reilly, said the scheme will not apply to staff nurses even though A&E nurses in particular had been the subject of an increasing number of attacks.