- Has there been a complete security audit of the hospital, including physical security, manpower needs, and police response?
- In the event of a bio-terrorism attack in your community, how much support can your security department expect from the local police?
- Have you reevaluated your bomb threat protocol and response training?
- Are you able to completely lock down your facility in 10 to 15 minutes as well as monitor breeches?
- If you are using CCTV, is there a written protocol for each camera?
- Is each camera monitored by a live person, and are all cameras being continuously recorded?
- Have you re-evaluated your access management program including badging, visiting hours and control, lock and key systems, and employee access?
- Have you measured the light for exteriors, including open surface parking lots, parking structures, and walkways?
- Have you instituted a security awareness training program and inculcated that program into employee orientation?
- Have you audited your access control program to ensure that only those who have legitimate need can access the hospital and specific areas at specific times, within the hospital as well as at the perimeter?
- If you are using contract guards, have you re-examined the contract, post orders, training requirements, and certificates of insurance?
- Have you considered how the events of 9/11 and subsequent warnings have affected a reasonable standard of care?
- Does your security program anticipate the need for crowd control expertise and the training required?
- Does your security plan anticipate the need to control the media and the dissemination of information?
- Has your security plan been reviewed by your corporate legal counsel and/or your risk manager?
The preceding questions are a small representation of the need to look at the security program in your hospital from a post 911 perspective. Clearly, some events, such as bomb threats, are much more likely to evoke a panic response. Disgruntled employees and estranged domestic partners who wish to disrupt the work-place are more likely to cloak their ruse in a manner to imply terrorism. A security audit may produce the need to make rather modest adjustments. Those adjustments may reduce substantially the potential for a costly consequence if things go wrong.
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