Security Guards: When you think of hospital jobs, you probably think first of positions like doctor, nurse, or administrator. But you might not think of some of the important hospital workers who work mostly behind the scenes. One such job is a security guard.
Security guards are a crucial component in a hospital setting. Here are some of the most important tasks they do to protect hospitals and keep patients and workers safe.
Patrol for Incidents
Hospitals are vulnerable environments to threats like theft and violence. If there is a threat, it can have a huge impact on the well-being of sick or injured patients. Evacuating these patients is not only time-consuming and complicated, but it can threaten their lives.
Unfortunately, threats to hospitals are all too common. Just recently in June 2017, Somerset Hospital in Somerset, PA was locked down for two hours because of a bomb threat.
Fortunately, security guards are trained to patrol the area and locate any threats. They can identify potential thieves or vandals, notice suspicious packages, or pinpoint slip-and-trip hazards in the building. They can mitigate these problems to protect the hospital building and its occupants.
Another potential incident is a fire breakout in the hospital. In this case, security guards know how to alert workers of the fire and how to help evacuate everyone.
Security Guards Handle Angry Patients and Family
In a hospital, patients suffer both physically and emotionally. This is especially true when they receive devastating news about a health condition. The hospital setting can significantly raise the stress levels of both patients and their family members. Thus, a hospital is a setting where it’s not uncommon to see someone lash out in anger.
Unfortunately, angry people can be a threat to hospital workers, patients, and visitors. They can emotionally abuse others and even cause physical violence. Without experience, calming these patients down can be difficult.
Guards have training in how to deal with angry and unmanageable people. They know how to deescalate the situation by speaking calmly, validating the person’s feelings, and giving the person options about what they should do next. If de-escalation strategies fail, security guards can safely secure the angry person or evacuate the angry person from the building. They can also protect other people from the angry person’s threats.
Prevent Violence, Harassment, and Other Incidents
There can be hundreds of people in a hospital at the same time, and hospital workers are busy addressing the needs of patients. This means that many possible problems among employees and patients can go unnoticed.
Security guards can stop inappropriate behavior such as violence and harassment. In fact, simply knowing that security guards are on the premises can discourage people from these practices.
Along with stopping incidents from happening, guards can quickly record any incidents for law enforcement officers. In fact, security guards are trained in incident report writing.
Security Guards Control Access to Hospital Areas
Hospital workers don’t want people entering sensitive areas of the hospital where they shouldn’t be. Thus, security guards can protect the hospital with locks, access control, and security systems. They can also use cameras to monitor who enters and exits various areas in the hospital.
With these methods, security guards can prevent intruders who could potentially harm patients and employees.
Clearly, there are many vital ways that security guards can benefit a hospital setting.
Plus, security guards can assist healthcare professionals and administrators with their basic duties. When you look for security guards for your hospital, find guards who are trained in CPR and using AEDs. They should also know the basic laws behind HIPAA.
Security Services Is The Smart Thing To Do
You can’t put a price on the security of your business. Hiring a security guard is the smart thing to do, while security systems have a role to play; they can’t protect humans in emergencies.
If you’re looking for a commercial security company to protect your business then look no further than Lighthouse Security Service. The company is a licensed/insured private security agency that provides protection to many companies, hotels, and so on. Our security services are having in-depth training to handle various scenarios that can come up on the job.
Make your business protected by contacting Lighthouse Security today and get assistance with any of your business’s security needs.
