Delaware hospital reviews security after fatal shooting

After a shooting that left one employee dead and another injured, ChristianaCare has expanded weapon screening at Wilmington Hospital in Delaware.

Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced last week that the accused shooter, John Wallace-Bey, 23, has been charged with murder in the first degree and several other felony charges. Wallace-Bey, who was working as an intern in the hospital’s information technology department, allegedly shot the two employees inside Wilmington Hospital on June 16, authorities say.

Jenn Schwartz, incoming president and CEO of ChristianaCare, said in a video posted on the health system’s Facebook page that the system has fielded numerous questions about security since the shooting. Schwartz said that Wilmington Hospital is now screening for weapons at employee entrances.

“We are committed to securing the physical and psychological safety of everyone, and continue to look at how to strengthen those safety protocols. We expanded weapons screening to include employee entrances at Wilmington Hospital,” Schwartz said in the video.

Schwartz said in the video that the system had received questions asking if staff would be screened for weapons.

Wallace-Bey managed to get out of the hospital after the shooting, but was arrested a few hours later in Philadelphia. Investigators say they believe the shooting was targeted, the Delaware attorney general’s office said.

Jennings said at a news conference that Wallace-Bey and the two victims, both young men, were working in a six-month IT internship program at ChristianaCare, WHYY reported. The accused shooter argued with the victims on the morning of June 16, left the hospital, returned and shot them, Jennings said.

Ethan Hillman, 19, died of his wounds, and the other victim was identified as Jayden Ellis, also 19, authorities said.

Wallace-Bey was an active employee with a valid employee badge on the day of the shooting, Schwartz said.

ChristianaCare has also received questions about how the system notified workers of the shooting. Schwartz said the questions include “the adequacy of notice to our caregivers.”

“I want you to know that we continue to review those notifications and our processes, and we will have more information in the coming days,” Schwartz said in the ChristianaCare video.

She acknowledged the difficult days since the shooting, and she said the system is focused on supporting the victims and the ChristianaCare staff.

“We have also heard extraordinary stories of heroism and compassion, such as caregivers who sheltered in place side by side with their patients to keep them safe. I am in awe of our caregivers who continue to show up every day, and because of that we have been able to care for our patients without interruption,” Schwartz said.

Paul Sarnese, a healthcare security consultant, told Chief Healthcare Executive® that hospitals and health systems should be regularly examining their procedures for dealing with shooters in their facilities. He also says all hospital staff should be encouraged to speak up if they think someone in the facility - whether it’s a patient, visitor, or fellow staff member - could potentially harm someone.

Sarnese said hospital leaders should be talking with their security leaders and ask about training for staff, violence prevention, and what work is being done with law enforcement and first responders.

Hospitals also need to conduct drills to train staff in dealing with active shooters.

“I would ask organizations that are not conducting drills to really reevaluate them and realize if done appropriately, there's great value,” Sarnese says. “If not done the right way, there's obviously some really negative consequences you can have with your reputation and trust with your employees.

“But I really, really want to encourage everybody to review their plans, review their training that they're providing to their staff, and then if they're not conducting exercises, start somewhere. Do a tabletop exercise, do a little functional exercise before you can then lead into a full-scale exercise, because that's the only way you're really going to know if you're prepared and if you provided the right training to your staff,” he says.

Health systems also need to consider security measures and drills beyond the hospitals and in outpatient facilities and clinics.

“I look at this just like fire drills,” he says. “We're required to do fire drills at our ambulatory facilities, our long-term care facilities, our primary care, our urgent cares, our other facilities. So active shooter (drills) should be no different than that.”