Union seeks more power for security staff after HSC assault
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/06/2018 (2106 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The union representing a Health Sciences Centre security officer who was stabbed in the head with a syringe this week is calling for improved training and greater powers for security staff.
“They need to have the ability to detain and restrain to provide the protection that is required,” said Michelle Gawronsky, president of the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union.
Police arrested a 56-year-old man in connection with the incident, which occurred late Wednesday afternoon at the Winnipeg hospital’s crisis response centre.
The union said the assailant attacked the security officer with a syringe that did not have a needle attached.
“The guy hit him hard enough in the temple that the syringe broke skin and there is now an open wound,” Gawronsky said Friday.
The security officer was also sprayed with what appeared to be blood, the union leader said.
The attacker claimed he had HIV, she added.
Police said in a statement the security officer was stabbed in the upper body with an unknown object. They say officers found “a syringe filled with an unknown substance” in the alleged assailant’s pocket at the time of his arrest.
Police said they responded to a call Wednesday that a man was fighting with Health Sciences Centre security staff and threatening to return with a firearm.
A suspect was later arrested.
The union said the hospital must ensure there is sufficient security to protect staff and patients alike. Security officers are trained in verbal crisis intervention and crisis response, but most lack the authority to physically detain and restrain troublemakers.
At one time, HSC security officers were granted special constable status, which gave them the ability to detain and restrain people, but the Justice Department halted the practice, the union said.
A 2016 amendment to the Mental Health Act that would have allowed for properly trained individuals within the health-care system to take on the role of peace officers on a limited basis has yet to be proclaimed.
Gawronsky said the injured security officer was back on the job the following day. However, she’s concerned he may suffer a delayed reaction to his traumatic experience.
The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority said in a statement no other staff or patients were hurt in the incident.
The WRHA said a critical incident stress management team will provide support to any staff affected by the altercation.
HSC security staff are “highly trained, well-equipped and well-managed,” the health region said Friday.
“HSC’s security team is not an entry-level force. All officers have previous security experience, many with military or police training, and/or as graduates of security colleges like Northwest Law Enforcement College.
“In addition, every security officer receives annual refresher training: in-house and with the Winnipeg Police Academy.”
Security policies and procedures are reviewed regularly, the WRHA said in its statement, including issues such as de-escalation techniques, dealing with violence and managing individuals with methamphetamine psychosis.
The WRHA said it is conducting a “detailed review” of the incident, and working with Winnipeg police to assess what went well and what could be handled differently in the future.
Wesley Daniel Benn of Winnipeg has been charged with assault with a weapon in connection with the incident.
larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca
Larry Kusch
Legislature reporter
Larry Kusch didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life until he attended a high school newspaper editor’s workshop in Regina in the summer of 1969 and listened to a university student speak glowingly about the journalism program at Carleton University in Ottawa.
History
Updated on Friday, June 22, 2018 4:56 PM CDT: Updated
Updated on Saturday, June 23, 2018 7:57 AM CDT: Final