Healthcare Security Regulatory Agencies: Conversations

Calls with agencies such as Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) cover topics such as how to interpret guidelines that may affect your security force options. The calls are recorded and transcribed for your convenience. 

From Nov. 18, 2014: Part 1 Conference call with Capt. Victoria Vachon from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding core issues surrounding the use of force protocols in a hospital setting. Contains the following: 

• CMS & Guardian 8 Call 18Nov14 (MP4)
• From Journal of Healthcare Protection Management v 30 (pdf)
• Transcript of Call 18Nov14 (pdf)

From Dec. 22, 2014: Part 2 Conference call with Capt. Victoria Vachon from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding core issues surrounding the use of force protocols in a hospital setting. Contains the following: 

• CMS & Guardian 8 Call 22Dec14 (MP4)
• Transcript of Call 22Dec14 (pdf)

From Apr. 30, 2015: The impacts of CMS regulations on hospital security are widely misconstrued, and for good reason. The agency’s guidelines on Patient Restraint or Seclusion are more than 40 pages long, and strict interpretation of CMS guidelines can entangle your hospital in OSHA compliance issues.

Join moderator Paul Hughes, COO of Guardian 8, and an all-star panel of hospital security experts to learn more about the impacts of CMS regulations on hospital policies for dealing with violent patients. PANELISTS: Bonnie Michelman, Mass General Hospital Rick Ward, Universal Protection Service Paul White, Securitas USA Healthcare Division Tony York, HSS, Inc.

• When does CMS consider the use of weapons by hospital security staff to be a law enforcement action, not a health care interaction, and what happens when these guidelines are misunderstood?
• Describe the use of force continuum as guidance about how much force may be used against a person in a given situation.
• How does a clear understanding of CMS’ “use of weapons” rule change the way hospitals determine which risk mitigation and response strategies are right for them?
• What *new* response options (appropriate for the healthcare setting) are now available
• What topics need to be covered when training hospital security officers in armed, intermediate and unarmed response?