Accreditation

Infant abduction training should be done regularly

Accreditation Connection, March 1, 2004

The first hospital infant abduction in the country in 22 months happened on Christmas Eve at the Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark, NJ. The incident served as a wakeup call to remind hospital staff that these incidents still occur.

Within hours of the abduction, police tracked down Martina Allen, 22, who allegedly befriended the new mother by telling her she was looking for her sister who was giving birth nearby. Allen now faces charges of kidnapping and endangering the welfare of a child.

Allen allegedly convinced the new mother to take a shower while she watched the three-day-old baby and then took the baby, clipped off her security anklet, wrapped her in a blanket, and left. She managed to pass a nursing station and at least one security guard before leaving the hospital. The hospital is investigating how the security breach occurred and how Allen was admitted to the maternity ward.

Long stretch of no infant abductions

While Cathy Nahirny, supervisor for the case analysis and support division at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), says she hoped to make it through the year without any abductions at hospitals, this latest incident isn't shocking.

"I expect this to happen. I think the positive aspect is that this was the only case out of a hospital for 2003 and that's pretty good," Nahirny says. "What I observe and anticipate is that as more and more hospitals train staff about infant abductions, conduct drills to test protocol, and use technology, it will be more difficult for an abduction in the health care setting."

The previous infant abduction took place on Feb20, 2002, in the mother's room at a Miami hospital. Since 1983, 22 months is the longest hospitals have gone without any infant abductions. See how many infant abductions have occurred since 1983 in the chart in the PDF of this issue.

"The longer we went, the happier we were, but it's not a total shock," says Fredrick G. Roll, MA, CHPA-F, CPP, president of Roll Enterprises, Inc., a Denver-based health care security and training firm. "You can't ever negate criminal activity from happen The best [thing] you can do is try to prevent it."



Prevent infant abduction

However, the longer hospitals go without an infant abduction is almost a catch-22, because it's easy to forget what to do when you let your guard down, says Nahirny. The recent abduction has served as a reto review policies and procedures preventing infant abduction, Roll and Nahirny say. When reviewing infant abduction prevention, keep the following in mind: 

Review your policies and procedures to ensure information is up-to-date and accurate. 

Check security-sensitive areas, such as maternity wards, nurseries, neonatal care units, and pediatrics. This includes conducting a physical check of all windows and door locks in the building. Also, ensure that there are layers of security to back up a failed door lock. 

Review all electronics equipment, including cameras, alarms, and infant tagging systems. Nahirny recommends displaying signs in areas that are monitored by video cameras, which may scare away a potential abductor. 

Make sure you've trained all staff. Complete intraining on infant abductions that ineducation about the "typical" abductor. "It sounded like a profile case," Nahirny says of the most recent abduction. Staff should always politely ask any suspicious person who he or she is there to see, she says. 

Communicate with nearby hospitals in the area if a suspicious person has visited your hospital. 

Review and practice infant abduction drills. If the hospital doesn't have a specific code when an infant abduction takes place, create one. 

Don't forget the importance of educating parents. Remember, more than 50% of abductions take place in the mother's room at the hospital. 

Be aware of the latest abduction case and its details. Although "copycats" exist, this is about staying educated, Nahirny says. 

Don't assume the race of the victim is going to match the race of the abductor. Abductors typically take babies who closely resemble their significant others, not themselves, Nahirny says. 

Complete a self-assessment of your hospitals inabduction protocol. Figuring out areas where a hospital is doiwell or needs more work is critical, Roll says. He rethe NCMEC's book, For Healthcare Pro Guidelines on Prevention of and Reto Infant Abduction.

"We took great steps in the last year that took us through those 22 months," Roll says. "That reflects the efforts of the national center, different associations, and people in hospitals looking at this as a significant issue and taking proactive steps."

Editor's note: The book For Healthcare Pro Guideon Prevention of and Reto Infant Ab was first published in May 1989, and is now in its 7th edition. Call the NCMEC at 800/843-5678 to order a copy of the book.


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