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Five Factors that Impact Security in Hospitals 

Engaging the right security partner is critical for maintaining a secure environment in a hospital or healthcare facility. The following healthcare security best practice considerations will help you select the most suitable contract security partner for your needs.
 

1. Ability to respond

Consider if the company has the manpower and knowledge to handle emergencies. Do they have flex-force management? Will you have access to a state-of-the-art command and control center? Can you reach their command center and customer service personnel 24/7?
 

2. Reporting procedures

What process is in place for communication? Can you use an extranet or other type of technology to stay on top of risk management issues? Also, review the procedures they have in place for incident reporting.
 

3. Industry-specific training

Providing security in a hospital is different than handling the security for other types of environments. Does their healthcare-specific training include topics such as:

• Disaster response

• Fire response (RACE) and prevention

• HazMat emergency response

• Workplace violence prevention and response

• Infant abduction prevention and response

• VIP security control

• Securing helipads

• EMTALA (Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act)

• Command center operations 

• HIPAA controls and compliance

• Training on The Joint Commission and other accrediting bodies

• Crime prevention

• Safety compliance

• Psychiatric observations/restraints

 

4. Ease of transition

Will you be able to receive dependable service from day one? Request a transition plan and make sure it covers who will be on your transition team, time frames and tasks to be accomplished. You want to be up and running in a realistic time frame with minimal disruption to your patients, visitors and staff.
 

5. A customizable and proactive solution

Before mapping out your healthcare security solution, the provider should become knowledgeable about your facility’s areas of specialty, your neighborhood, typical patient and visitor profiles and a host of other important areas so that they can make appropriate recommendations. Their plan should incorporate staffing levels, indoor and outdoor patrols, access points, visitor procedures, technology integration and other pertinent areas of concern specific to your facility.

To learn more about security solutions for your healthcare facility, visit our Healthcare & Hospital Security Services page.