By Jeff Wardon, Jr., Assistant Editor

Healthcare facilities face potentially volatile and violent scenarios daily, with threats affecting patients, staff and visitors. Being secured and equipped with appropriate technologies can help healthcare facilities deal with these threats accordingly. 

Gunshots were fired inside Baptist Health Hardin in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, on Oct. 19, according to WDRB. The alleged gunman was identified as 39-year-old George Lee Jr., who according to police reports made threats to hospital staff and patients. As police were arriving at the hospital, occupants were running out. The police then encountered Lee in a corridor, and an officer fired once at Lee, striking him. Lee was airlifted to the University of Louisville Hospital, where he is reportedly in critical yet stable condition. 

Incidents involving armed individuals in healthcare facilities are becoming more common. For example, the Cleveland Clinic reported confiscating 30,000 weapons brought in by patients and visitors in 2023.  

Related: Preventing Weapon-Related Violence in Healthcare

One technology healthcare facilities manager can use in these situations is a weapon detection system, which helps detect weaponry entering and exiting the building. 

Such a system is being installed in Community Health Network, which launched an AI-powered weapons detection system at its hospitals in late 2023, according to a press release. Their system alerts security guards if it detects a potential weapon and tracks down the precise location of the item on the person.  

“This advanced technology ensures a response that is both rapid and appropriate, making the process up to 10 times faster than traditional metal detectors, with no need for individuals to empty their pockets or remove belts,” says a press release from Community Health Network. 

Jeff Wardon, Jr., is the assistant editor for the facilities market.