By Ken Bukowski/ Special to Healthcare Facilities Today

There are many security threats that healthcare facilities face on a daily basis. Whether it is theft of prescription drugs, violence by unstable patients or anything in between or beyond, hospitals need to be prepared to handle each of these very different, but common, scenarios. 

Healthcare leaders should start with ensuring proper safety and security measures are in place to decrease the chances of a threat. A great starting point would be to evaluate your security program, the security officers at your site and their training. 

The most critical training for security officers is Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, or EMTALA. Security officers can very easily violate this federal law without knowing it if they are not properly trained. Every individual should have an understanding of the key issues encountered in the realm of healthcare security as well as facility- and post-specific security challenges. 

Healthcare security officers also need to be familiar with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, otherwise known as HIPAA, and OSHA.

The HIPAA Privacy Rule protects the privacy of individually identifiable health information; the HIPAA Security Rule sets national standards for the security of electronic protected health information; and the confidentiality provisions of the Patient Safety Rule protects identifiable information being used to analyze patient safety events and improve patient safety. Security officers must understand the importance of confidentiality and know their role in helping their facility maintain all HIPPA standards.

OSHA requires employers to provide workers with a safe workplace that does not have any known hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious injury. Security officers are critical to the development and maintenance of a safe workplace and can take a leadership role in enforcing safety standards.

Other key training areas for security officers include:

• The Joint Commission Standards

• Patient Restraint/Watches

• Transcultural Healthcare 

• Fire Safety 

• Emergency Preparedness 

• Evacuation Procedures 

• CPR/First Aid/AED 

• Customer Service

• De-escalation Techniques

Security officers can positively impact a healthcare facility’s safety and security, as well as patient satisfaction. Security training should be developed to meet each facility’s unique needs and culture and ongoing training is critical.

Bukowski is the vice president of healthcare, AlliedBarton Security Services.