Safeguarding Healthcare: Protecting Patients and Staff

Safety and security in healthcare is more important than ever. The last few years the strain on staff and patients has caused an alarming uptick in violent attacks. Patients and staff must feel safe and secure in the hospital which means healthcare should think beyond putting cameras in the parking garage to secure their facilities.

Hospitals can use a combination of security cameras and video management software (VMS) to create a more comprehensive and secure surveillance program. A wide range of security issues that hospitals face on a day-to-day basis can be addressed with a VMS like Milestone Systems XProtect®.

Safety for all who enter

Threat detection used to be limited to a camera streaming live video to security personnel—who monitored the stream every minute of every day. The technology was adequate, but it still relied on some luck. Could a security officer spot an incident the second it happened and then launch an appropriate response before it was too late? What happens when they take their eyes off the monitors for a few seconds, they could miss an incident completely? 

Today, surveillance is still about monitoring and recording people and places for safety and security. Milestone Systems’ new technology uses video, audio, two-way communication, and a range of sensors to provide more information and evidence for security personnel.

Safety on the inside

Milestone’s solutions help medical staff monitor multiple patients’ treatment at once while reducing the amount of close interaction in an infected patient’s room. This allows clinicians to give better care with the ability to alert staff if a patient is in distress or falls out of bed assists in keeping patients safer as well.

Security systems play an active role supporting the critical functions of the hospital. Access control systems specifically allow authorized staff to enter restricted areas of the hospital while keeping the space and assets secure and out of the wrong hands.

Partnering with third-party technologies can extend security beyond access control:

• Intrusion systems keep away unwanted visitors.
• Thermal sensors detect human activity in restricted areas.
• Sound detection (screams, gunshots, breaking glass) monitors building activity.
• Fire and life safety systems integrations detect fire, carbon monoxide, smoke, and more.

Forensic investigation

The Milestone XProtect solution can detect and capture vital evidence when incidents or accidents occur. The system also provides aggression analytics on unruly patients and when paired with sensors detects elevated voice levels, such as arguments or shouting.  It can also report sound analytics, flag gunshot detection, and even provide key phrase recognition, so investigators can quickly find the necessary evidence to help a hospital mitigate the risk of legal action or alleged compliance violations.

With the right integrations from Convergint’s technology partners, a hospital can conduct detailed, efficient investigations without wasting time and money sifting through hours or even weeks of video content.

Safety, security, and flexibility

Convergint’s integration with technology partners provides hospitals with more than just a picture on a security monitor. They offer a flexibility that customizes to your security needs. Milestone’s open platform helps hospitals do all they can to guarantee the safety of their healthcare staff and patients.