The WA Government will spend $484,000 on state-of-the-art security to better protect staff at regional hospitals from violence.
The hub will initially support frontline staff at seven pilot sites, with more to be added this year as part of the Government’s measures to stop violence against healthcare staff.
Operating out of a state-wide CCTV Operations Room, co-located within the WA Country Health Service (WACHS) Command Centre, the specialist closed-circuit television technology will enable real-time support for some of regional WA’s most isolated hospitals and health services.
Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said it was anticipated that the new service would enhance safety and deter antisocial behaviour at the Kununurra, Hedland, Karratha, Meekatharra, Collie, Bridgetown, and Halls Creek hospitals.
“Any kind of aggressive behaviour towards healthcare staff is completely unacceptable, and the security specialists in the CCTV Operations Room will be able to help identify threats early and assist to de-escalate these incidents,” she said.
WACHS Chief Executive Jeff Moffet said healthcare workers provided an essential service and should be able to get on with their job without the threat of violence.
“On average, two country healthcare workers a day are being assaulted while at work. It’s unacceptable, it’s alarming and it’s on the rise,” he said.
“That’s why we’ve established a dedicated country health security hub that is currently being trialled at some of our most remote site with plans to further expand throughout the year.”
Using specialised CCTV technology, security experts will act as a second set of eyes and can detect and respond to aggressive situations before they escalate to violent ones.
“Just last weekend, our CCTV Operations Room was the first to detect a violent incident occurring at Bridgetown Hospital,” Mr Moffet said. “They were able to alert staff to it, as well as police, and quickly prevent the situation from escalating.
“We know aggressive incidents like this have wide-ranging consequences and can impact the psychological and physical wellbeing of our people. But it also impacts our ability to staff our hospitals. It’s important we continue to do all we can to keep staff and patients safe.”
The advanced security monitoring builds upon existing security measures such as personal duress alarms, local CCTV, swipe access systems, on-the-ground security, and comprehensive staff safety training.