Erratic behaviour and violence in the Timmins and District Hospital emergency department have led to tighter security.
President and CEO Mike Baker says it’s reaction to patients saying they’re not comfortable in the waiting room… and staff members who say in addition to that, some of them have been assaulted.
Baker says security officers are now more visible in the department.
“They have some other shorter routines that they have to also manage,” he notes, “but their principal position will be in the emergency department from 7:00pm to 7:00am.”
Baker expects the upcoming new, larger ER with a bigger waiting room and treatment areas will improve the situation, but that’s a few years away.
He says in the meantime, inappropriate behaviour has to be controlled, even though it doesn’t always lead to violence.
“If you’re sitting in our emergency room with a small child, there are certain actions that you just don’t want to see. We’re going to take a hands-on approach to that it we have to.”
Baker adds that staff and security guards are well trained in de-escalation and hands-on restraint systems, and that the situation isn’t specific only to the Timmins hospital.
There’s much more in the audio link below.
