It hardly needs to be said that hospitals play an important role in our cities and towns, providing individuals with the vital services they need to stay healthy and well. Babies are born in hospitals; emergency care is rendered; lives are saved. All of these things are far too vital to risk their disruption—yet disturbances can happen, and for a number of reasons. Think break-ins, rowdy patients, unexpected violence, and other security concerns. That’s why hospital security services are of the essence: In order to maintain their role within the community, each hospital has a responsibility to invest in meaningful security protocols. And often, that requires them to hire hospital security services from an external provider, such as MPS Security.
Hospitals and Their Security Needs
What makes it so necessary to hire hospital security services, as opposed to just appointing a few in-house guards? As it turns out, hospitals face a few unique security concerns.
The first concern is that the average hospital is fairly large and somewhat labyrinthine in nature; even a modestly sized hospital tends to have various wings and floors, and the patient needs in each wing may differ. For instance, the security needs in the maternity floor may be very different from the security needs in the ICU. Maintaining a facility-wide sense of security can be challenging for anyone but a true professional.
There are other concerns, besides. Most hospitals have a lot of people going in and out at all times. They have big equipment that can bring unique security threats, and departments such as the pharmacy that make significant targets for potential thieves.
The bottom line: Hospital protective services are required due to the sheer complexity of these healthcare facilities.
How Security Links to Quality
It’s also important to note that hospital security is directly linked to quality patient outcomes.
Consider it this way: Hospital security providers are expected to keep medical facilities safe and protected from any source of danger or intrusion. A safer and better-protected medical environment allows medical professionals to work more effectively, focusing on the medicine as opposed to external security threats. When doctors and nurses can focus 100 percent of their attention on patient care, it in turn improves the quality of life for patients.
The Hospital Security Officer’s Duty
What should be expected of the hospital security provider? As it turns out, the expectations are fairly lofty. They include:
- Deliver superior protection to the facility, staff, and patients.
- Ensure the safety of all the hospital’s facilities and locations.
- Assist in keeping the peace.
- Deal with any intrusion that threatens to disrupt the caregiving services of the hospital.
- Assist in emergencies that can befall the facility.
- Identify potential threats and address them proactively.
- Keep everyone in the building calm even in the midst of a potential security breach.
- Empower the medical staff to focus on providing excellent care.
Given these high expectations, it’s no wonder that more and more healthcare organizations choose to hire hospital protective services from external firms, such as MPS Security.
The MPS Security Difference
MPS Security is a national leader in hospital security services. (We also offer executive protection services for healthcare CEOs.) Our team stands out from the competition for a few different reasons:
- We have decades of experience in this unique field, and know the ins and outs of hospital security better than anyone else in the industry.
- Our security team members are all highly trained to provide best-in-class crisis management services. Each uniformed security officer on our team is able to assist with risk mitigation, as well.
- We abide by the tenets espoused in the Code of Ethics in Healthcare, and take seriously the responsibilities of keeping patients and medical staff members safe.
- MPS Security takes a fully custom approach, and adapts our security procedures to meet the unique needs of each client and facility.
The protection of our hospitals, hospital staff, and patients should not be left to standard security providers. It should be left in the hands of a trusty and seasoned security firm that ensures it will handle such delicate clients with professionalism and care. A strong relationship between the medical center and its security provider ensures that quality of care is not impaired and patients and employees alike will feel a sense of safety.
MPS is proud to be the healthcare and hospital security provider of choice for medical facilities in California and across the country; reach out to us today to learn more.
