Becker's Hospital Review

26 POPULATION HEALTH 26 CEO / STRATEGY Philadelphia hospital outlines security changes after shooting at facility By Kelly Gooch I n the aermath of a fatal shooting that took place inside omas Jefferson Uni- versity Hospital, the Philadelphia-based organization is making security changes as it continues to analyze its procedures. e shooting occurred Oct. 4 on the ninth floor of the hospital and resulted in the death of Anrae James, a 43-year-old certi- fied nursing assistant who was pronounced dead shortly aer he was shot. e suspected shooter, 55-year-old nursing assistant Stacey Hayes, allegedly shot and killed Mr. James before wounding two officers in a shootout with police. Mr. Hayes has been charged with murder in the death of Mr. James. Since the shooting, "our only concern has been the safety and well-being of our employ- ees, patients and students. We are micro-an- alyzing our security procedures to ensure we fully understand what we could have changed or done differently," Jefferson Health spokes- person John Brand said in a news release shared with Becker's. Mr. Brand said a preliminary investigation showed that process deficiencies, as well as human error, contributed to delayed hospital emergency communications. "It is important to stress that the outcome would not have been different in this specific case," he said. "We are very fortunate that [the Oct. 4] in- cident did not result in more injuries." According to Mr. Brand, the hospital's pro- cess is to communicate emergencies through overhead paging in the clinical building where the event is taking place. However, the overhead communication sys- tem "was not used effectively" in this instance, Mr. Brand said. "Delays in using our overhead communica- tion system resulted in our team members learning about the shooting through Jef- fAlert, text messages and/or social media. We also initiated a 'code blue' alert before an alert of an active shooter, drawing a response team to the area where the shooting occurred," he said. "Although we knew the shooter had le, this was a protocol error." While the hospital systems and addition- al investments in security — including the Strongline safety badge, turnstiles at entranc- es, an armed Jefferson police force and metal detectors in emergency rooms — likely would not have prevented the Oct. 4 tragedy, he said the hospital is "committed to putting in place appropriate changes that will improve our processes and ability to communicate in 'real time.'" e hospital outlined various changes it is making or has made as the investigation re- lated to the shooting continues. Among them are: • Increasing security staff • Additional training with all security personnel • Working with Philadelphia police for great- er presence on campus • Initiating a more vigilant screening process for more entrances • Reducing entrances to the main hospital aer hours • Closing ground-level entrances that are not staffed • Improving procedures for overhead pages "We are committed to the safety of our em- ployees, patients, students, faculty and com- munity members, and will continue to ana- lyze and evaluate this incident while setting a course of action that is tangible and meaning- ful," Mr. Brand said. As of Oct. 8, a motive for the shooting re- mained unclear, although police have said that Mr. James was targeted, according to e Philadelphia Inquirer. n 67% of employees ready to quit say leaders made empty pandemic promises for well-being By Hannah Mitchell H ospital leaders have a big role in retention at their organization, with most employees associating sup- portive leadership with top reasons to stay at a job, according to a survey by Talkspace and The Harris Poll. The survey sought responses from more than 1,000 full- time U.S. employees to better understand the experienc- es that have led to the "Great Resignation," according to a Sept. 22 news release. Seven survey insights: 1. Six in 10 employees said having supportive leadership can improve retention. Employees ranked a supportive manager above a strong office culture and mentorship. 2. Six of the top 10 reasons employees would stay at a job were associated with leadership and culture. 3. Sixty-seven percent of employees who were considering quitting said their employers haven't followed through on early pandemic promises to focus on employee mental health. 4. Sixty-eight percent of potential quitters said their em- ployers told employees they should focus on self-care but didn't provide the resources to do so. 5. Forty-one percent of employees said they were likely to consider a job change to resolve stress. These employees would choose resigning over utilizing company policies, such as short-term leaves or changing departments. 6. At least 25 percent of respondents said they were under- performing due to stress. 7. Employees under 35 and mothers were more likely to quit in the next six months because of stress. n

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