At Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust (SCH) its security system used to be standalone keypads with locks at every door.
Visitors were supposed to enter the main building and be verified by the CCTV system. That didn’t always happen.
Being a children’s hospital, concerned children and parents pepper the corridors. Emotions can be highas parents watch their children have surgery, therapy or cope with a lifelong disease. Security became an issue as anxious parents started learning the keypad codes to enter restricted areas. They would watch a doctor or nurse punch in the code, and soon they would use it too. Next, parents would share that information with other parents in the canteen. Soon parents, grandparents and others were entering restricted areas and causing problems for staff.
Hospital staff was concerned about the safety of their patients above all, and for the potential for theft and child abduction. To deal with the problem, SCH worked through OGC Buying Solutions and upgraded to G4Tec’s Symmetry Security Management System. OGC Buying Solutions is an Executive Agency of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in the Treasury. They provide a procurement service to the public sector to enable organisations to deliver value for money, and advise on technical issues, energy saving and environmental improvements. Working through the OGC, SCH was able to expedite the tender process and implement its new Symmetry Security Management System faster.
"Having the Symmetry Security Management System allowed me to restrict access to certain individuals," said SCH’s Health, Safety and Security Advisor, Danny Boardman.
Every staff member is required to wear an ID badge that doubles as their access card. Authorised staff members can now enter restricted areas where parents and other family and friends are prohibited. Parents must be accompanied by a doctor or nurse to enter, and sometimes they are not allowed to enter at all.
The Symmetry Security Management system allows SCH to secure high risk areas such as the MRI Suite, pharmacy and mortuary. The MRI Suite is a cause for concern. No one can enter that room with any metal. The MRI machine acts like a large magnet and if someone walks into the room with a scissors, it will literally fly through the room to the MRI machine. Access is only granted to those that work in that suite. Monitoring the pharmacy, especially during the late shift is critical. Reports are run to track who has entered the pharmacy and at what time. If something is suspicious, the reports can confirm who’s been in there. CCTV cameras can confirm how long they were in there.
The Symmetry Security Management operates over the hospital’s local area network. Using the LAN saved installation and cable costs. SCH received staff input on the security system prior to installing it. Employees were concerned about big brother watching their every move, but have since embraced the system. They understand it’s for their protection. After 8pm and before 6am SCH requires staff to swipe their card and enter a pin number on all external doors.
What they say
"The security system has made it easier to prevent members of the public to access the building," said Danny Boardman. "Before, we didn’t have the ability to prevent this and it was easy for the public to access the hospital; now it’s a lot less likely. Our staff and patients are much safer and moral has improved as a result."
"Providing a secure environment for our patients was a top priority. In addition to our excellent healthcare staff and facilities, patients have another reason to trust SCH," said Danny Boardman. "We like the ability to expand with the security management system, and may possibly roll it out to the car park scheme in the near future.”
Details
Symmetry Security Management System
MultiNODE Door Controllers
86 proximity readers
2,460 users, nine sites
