College campuses are crowded places. From dorms and lecture halls to gymnasiums and dining halls, college students spend those formative years shoulder-to-shoulder. Is it still possible to be lonely and isolated on a college campus? What are the signs of loneliness, if it’s something other than just being physically alone? Most importantly, why do campus workers need to know the signs of...

Many years ago, when I was working as a hospital security officer, I was sent to a patient unit regarding a “combative patient.” Oddly enough, healthcare workers rarely regard themselves as being in “combat” when a patient is grabbing, hitting, or kicking them; but, when they describe someone who is acting out at the moment, they often choose the adjective “combative” to describe the behavior...

Many times, security leaders recognize that if we are not to deliver on our mission, something in our operation needs to change. At the same time, we will likely be confronted with challenges that stand in the way of affecting that change.

Some of the more common challenges that we face in healthcare are competition for resources, resistance by those who may not believe change is needed, or...

Since the COVID-19 pandemic has entered our world, business as usual has changed drastically. Being security professionals in a healthcare environment, we are dealing with a variety of challenges even without the addition of COVID-19 to the equation. Emotions fueled by anxiety and escalated fear of others, coupled with the devastation and destruction of panic are the ingredients needed for chaos...

There is no denying it; hospitals can be difficult places to work. No matter which profession you’re in, from hospital security to nursing, the hours are long, and weekends and holidays are just another day at work. Moreover, with nursing shortages, an aging demographic, dwindling psychiatric care resources, and other factors creating increasing demands on healthcare providers from all sides, the...

During the class, the instructors learned how to respond to institutional emergencies that include disturbance emergencies, medical emergencies, fire emergencies, and miscellaneous emergencies such as weather...

When we think of basic human needs, hierarchies often come to mind. What is it that people need and how are those needs related to human behavior? That’s the question that human services professionals often ask, and the one de-escalation trainers need to answer. Years ago, I learned through several personal and professional experiences that people act-out for reasons, not because of diagnoses. It...

In a previous article, I made a case for there being just two attributes that drive the success of any organization — innovation and customer service. Then, in that article, I described how to improve customer service by providing a form of training that’s usually reserved for police and corrections officers.