The California Department of Occupational Safety and Health has proposed new regulations that aim to prevent workplace violence in the healthcare industry.
At New York City’s Metropolitan Hospital, one of New York City Health and Hospital Corporation’s 11 acute care facilities, the mission is to provide high-quality care and comprehensive health services to all New Yorkers regardless of ability to pay, says Anthony Notaroberta, Director of Operations at Metropolitan Hospital.
Healthcare security and life safety is “a constant balancing act between securing the facility and offering an open and caring welcome.” That’s consultant Tom Clancy’s sage advice. And an echo of Ohio Health’s Harry Trombitas’ experienced guidance: His security operation “values an open and welcoming atmosphere that focuses on outstanding patient care.
In the 2015 Anthem data breach, the compromise of an adminstrator’s credentials was the initial entry point that caused the breach and exposure of 13.5 million patient records. High-profile, high-impact breaches like this are spurring healthcare enterprises to institute more cybersecurity defenses and to monitor the insider threat.
The Occupational Health Safety Network (OHSN) found that injuries associated with workplace violence increased overall from 2012 to 2014 and "nearly doubled for nurse assistants and nurses."
Emergency code terminology used to notify staff in healthcare facilities about an event that requires immediate action varies greatly from one facility to another in Pennsylvania. Healthcare facilities are encouraged to standardize codes for increased patient safety, according to a Pennsylvania Patient Safety Advisory article.
One in three U.S. hospitals reported an increase in violence and assaults in 2014 despite widespread rising security budgets, according to a survey of 380 hospital administrators, chief security officers and staff by Guardian 8 Corporation.
Hospitals, assisted living centers, nursing homes and other healthcare providers are under constant pressure to keep their facilities safe while managing costs. In addition, they need to manage constant visitor traffic, open access in multiple buildings, hectic emergency departments, confidentiality requirements, governmental standards and patient satisfaction surveys. To effectively deal with all these issues, more and more healthcare institutions are opting to outsource their physical security services.
How is healthcare industry security changing? The evolving demographics of the average emergency room population, in addition to an increased focus on workplace violence, are impacting the security department’s role within a hospital or healthcare system.
