Page 35 - Security Today, April 2019

Speeding Up Response with
Unified Hospital Security
Lee Health is now managing security across 20 sites and count- ing using the Genetec Security Center unified platform. After consulting with Fiber Solutions, a technology contractor, the Lee Health team saw how security center met all their must-have cri- teria. Today, security operators at the award-winning Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida monitor video, access control, automatic license plate recognition, intercom, and other security sensors from a single intuitive solution.
Now, whether an intercom call comes in from the parking ga- rage or a camera goes offline in the emergency room, the security team can act quickly. Using the security platform, teams at each site can collaborate and share information to keep everyone safe. They have also enhanced operations in countless ways such as
streamlining parking access for physicians and upholding infec- tion containment protocols during renovations.
At Lee Health, the safety of patients, staff, and guests come first. That’s why installing Security Center has been a pivotal up- grade to the organization’s security operations.
“In the past, if an alarm was activated, our team would have to check multiple systems to figure out what was going on; it was cumbersome and simply unacceptable,” said Sean Owens, direc- tor of security technology and non-acute care at Lee Health. “The unified security platform provides our operators with one central source of information. It’s a refreshing change to have one solution from which the team can handle any issue.”
From the unified interface, operators view and manage vid- eo, door alarms, license plate reads, intercom and panic button notifications across many facilities. These include more than 16 non-acute centers and five major hospitals including Cape Coral Hospital, Gulf Coast Medical Center, HealthPark Medical Cen- ter, Lee Memorial Hospital, and Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.
A System Built for Operator Efficiency
Now, when a panic alarm is triggered, operators can immediately view video to see what’s happening. They use a map of the facili- ties to find nearby views, unlock or lockdown doors or wings of buildings, and activate threat levels as needed. Selecting a threat level provides operators with tools and easy-to-follow procedures to address specific events as quickly as possible. While each acute site has its own security team, operators can remotely check-in on other sites and assist when needed.
“In a healthcare environment, it can get quite confusing for operators to manage cameras across many facilities because all corridors tend to look the same,” said Rodney Lavoie, president and CEO of Fiber Solutions. “Plan Manager, the map-based in- terface, is very helpful to customers like Lee Health because it allows users to quickly find devices within any building.”
The team also uses loitering analytics in the obstetrics unit to prevent possible infant abductions. This helps operators monitor suspicious behavior and keep newborns safe.
“A unified solution has many components that are specifically designed to work together,” Lavoie said. “As an integrator, it’s much easier for our team to work with one manufacturer and so- lution than having to constantly maintain integrations following upgrades or to keep up with training from various vendors. We partner with Genetec because we believe Security Center is one of the effective enterprise-level solutions on the market.”
A Platform that Boosts Operations
Lee Health has experienced significant operational improve- ments since installing Security Center. For instance, the number of liability claims has drastically reduced. The team can now quickly and easily locate and retrieve video evidence to support or disprove claims.
Savings have also come from maximizing staff resources by allowing nurses to virtually monitor patients who have high fall risks.
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