Enhanced Non-Lethal Security Blog

I received a link to a Security Magazine article from a colleague who simply said, "Interesting read" in the subject header of the email. Naturally, my curiosity caused me to click on the link. Perhaps it's the same thing that caused you to start reading this blog post.

In my situation, I was glad that I clicked the link.

The article was well-written (I've come to expect this from the folks at Security Magazine). It featured the summary of a webinar about whether or not to arm security officers in hospitals. What caught my eye, however, was the disparity between the term "armed" and the alternative (nothing). Implied in the article is the idea that "armed" only means lethal force and that the alternative is to “Take a zero incidence philosophy; or consider a mix of policies such as having a licensed police officer on site, particularly within the ER; and develop strong 911 ties.”

A broken nose, eye socket, and a hearty insurance claim to boot...

Of all the places for a security officer to get assaulted, you wouldn't think a horse racing track would be one of them.

But that kind of thinking (assuming violence can't happen "here") inevitably leads to someone getting hurt, right?

Just look at this recent case in New York where an unarmed officer was assaulted and severely injured by an aggressor for no apparent reason. The suspect even stole the security officer's car following the assault.

This article was originally published by the Boston Herald on April 5, 2015.

By Jordan Graham

Newton-Wellesley Hospital will be rolling out new, non-lethal devices for its security staff in the coming weeks, as hospitals across the country have seen an increase in violent attacks by patients.

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 When Guardian 8 first formed back in 2008, we were motivated by a single goal: to create a solution to the problem that made being a security guard one of the most hazardous jobs there are. We knew it would revolutionize professional security when we created a new category called Enhanced Non-Lethal. We assembled a team of experts representative of the best in the industry, including companies like TASER, Digital Ally and Garmin. We incorporated the technology of companies like Sabre Red, BladeTech and Bluetooth. We patented our own precision OC stream to create a product that filled the role of an "intermediate" response - as I like to say, between talking to 'em and shooting at 'em.  

Hospital security staff have long been in the difficult position of trying to keep an emergency department approachable as a valued service to the community, and yet protect staff and patients from those who are capable of extreme violence. This conundrum was at the core of a recent blog post appearing on the Joint Commission Leadership blog, titled Hospital Security – Different Approaches to Mitigating Violence, by Mark Crafton. The piece centered on discussion of the pros and cons of arming hospital security guards with deadly force weapons.