The patient was treated at the scene and transferred to ECMC Hospital in Buffalo. No staff, visitors or other patients were harmed, the statement said.
“Incidents like this are becoming all too common, and it is critical to all of us that our associates not be put in danger,” Joyce Markiewicz, BSN, RN, president and CEO of Buffalo-based Catholic Health, said in the statement.
In response, the system added a second armed guard at the hospital who will be stationed at the emergency department 24/7, Ms. Markiewicz said.
CWA Local 1168 is calling for stronger security measures, conflict deescalation training and mental health support for workers at hospitals and healthcare facilities, according to a March 10 Facebook post. Communications Workers of America District 1 represents 145,000 workers in 200 CWA local unions in New York, New Jersey, New England and eastern Canada.
“Today, our leadership team is evaluating the results of a third-party safety study recently completed at Catholic Health,” Ms. Markiewicz said. “We have reached out to invite our CWA partners to be part of this discussion, and will be taking action on the recommended plan immediately.”
Becker’s has reached out to the Buffalo Police Department and Communications Workers of America District 1 and will update this story if more information becomes available.
