In the week since a man entered Brigham and Women's Hospital and shot and killed a physician, security has been a top topic of discussion within Greater Boston's health care community, according to an article on the Boston Business Journal website.
Metal detectors and armed guards are being discussed, but whatever the measures in place, security is grounded in an organization's plan for communication, Mark Dutra, director of security and public safety at Franciscan Hospital for Children, said in the article.
At Franciscan Hospital, staff has developed a "code silver" plan in the case of a security issue. Other hospitals have a remote-locking system at entranceways to evaluate people before they even are allowed to enter a facility. In each case, balancing the need for security and the cost of such measures is difficult, the article said.
Prioritizing funding for security will become increasingly difficult, according to Dutra. Hospitals facing more revenue pressures and federal funding for security is becoming harder to come by.
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