Photo courtesy St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital
In the wake of a violent incident a week ago in the emergency department at St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital, the administration is exploring the use of additional security options.
On Nov. 9, police were called to the hospital when a man who had been discharged refused to leave and brandished a knife.
The situation was resolved without injury and staff were praised “for their calm, decisive response.”
In a statement from Tonya Sheldon, hospital vice-president, she advised they are monitoring hospitals that are running pilot programs involving full body scanners.
She added the results of those programs will help guide future decisions about safety at the hospital.
“At St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital, we take safety and preparedness seriously,” stressed Sheldon. “Our security teams use body-worn cameras, introduced a few years ago to support de-escalation and help protect both staff and patients.
“We also recently completed a Code Silver simulation training exercise with the St. Thomas Police Service, which helped strengthen our readiness for situations like this.”
Written by Ian McCallum
