News
Weapons and the threat to human safety in hospitals: New research by Canpro Training Resources
January, 2007
Building on the human safety and workplace violence audits conducted on behalf of a British Columbia health authority in 2005 and 2006, Canpro Training Resources has recently been asked to examine and report on the utility, relevance and practicality of airport style metal detectors in hospital emergency departments.
Healthcare professionals are at far greater risk of violent attack than any other working group in North America. The risk of violence is even more acute in hospital emergency departments where patients, and their families, are anxious, frightened, and sometimes in an altered state of consciousness. Adding to this risk, there have been incidents of patients and visitors bringing various forms of weapons into emergency departments.
With our involvement in the International Association of Healthcare Security and Safety, ASIS International, and our links to academia, we were able to examine best practices in hospital security across North America and review academic research focusing on weapons possession and use in healthcare settings. An examination of what works, what does not, and why, in terms of mitigation strategies lead to an analysis of policy and practical considerations in the use of airport style metal detectors in healthcare as one tool in human safety enhancement.
The final report, including recommendations, has been distributed within the North American and European healthcare security and safety field.
