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Tip of the week: Test your site’s prisoner patient policies

Hospital Safety Connection, January 9, 2008

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A prisoner escape at a hospital in Maryland included an unlikely chain of events that could make for a good drill scenario.

On January 2, a prisoner patient went to Laurel (MD) Regional Hospital for treatment. Two state correctional officers-one of whom carried a gun-accompanied the patient. The prisoner assaulted and disarmed the officers while in the hospital, according to Maryland State Police. A second correctional team guarding another prisoner patient came to help their coworkers, and the inmate also disarmed them.

The prisoner then used one of the guns to shoot off his leg shackles, which caught the attention of a hospital security officer. However, the prisoner confronted the security officer and took him hostage at gunpoint, holding the weapon to the victim's head while he walked out the front door, according to state police.

The suspect then carjacked a vehicle waiting outside after shooting the driver. Hours later, after another related carjacking miles away, police surrounded the suspect in a graveyard. After the prisoner fired at police, they shot back and killed him, according to the Prince George's County Police Department. The driver of the carjacked vehicle is expected to recover.

This situation brings up a host of questions regarding prisoner patient policies and weapons.

Regardless, it's doubtful that many hospitals have ever planned a security or emergency drill that involved a person overpowering five security or correctional officers. This might be a good test for your own security team in terms of lockdown, workplace violence, and visitor safety.

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