Hospital employees trained in how to deal with a shooter

Active-shooter incidents in the post-Columbine era last an average of just eight minutes, and such a narrow window of time means the carnage may be over before police can even get to the scene.

Healthcare workers are also among the most likely of any occupation to be assaulted, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics.

That combination puts hospitals at an increased safety risk, officials at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington say, so they've partnered with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Lake County Sheriff's Office SWAT team to provide training for hostage and shooting situations.

Nearly 100 employees from Good Shepherd and the nine other Advocate hospitals attended a seminar Tuesday afternoon to learn about communication, effective tactics and their roles.

"Most institutions operate with a this won't happen here mindset," said Lt. Phillip Schatzel, manager of public safety at Advocate Lutheran General in Park Ridge. "We can't stand idly by for (police) to arrive. We want to mitigate as much as possible."

The biggest development employees learned about is the code silver system Good Shepherd is implementing in the event of a shooting. Just as code blue refers to a medical emergency, some hospitals use silver to denote a person with a weapon.

When "code silver shooter" is activated, staff within the building is supposed to close doors to rooms and offices and if possible, lock and barricade them. They should turn off the lights and get down to the floor and against a solid, interior wall.

Unfortunately, there wasn't much more direction than that because every situation will be different. Even the decision about how to handle immobile patients is left to an employee's best judgment, Good Shepherd public safety manager Dennis Walters said.

At some Advocate hospitals, including Illinois Masonic and Lutheran General, public safety officers carry firearms. There's no plan for that at Good Shepherd, but officials aren't ruling out the possibility and emphasized more drills and training will come.

Helping to lead the seminar was Lake County Sheriff's Office Lt. Scott Robin, who educates schools and large businesses. He said the training is especially vital for hospitals because they deal with many of the same people as police, given the number of injured offenders and suspects that need treatment.

Good Shepherd employs about 1,700 associates and a medical staff of 700 physicians. Last year, the hospital served about 15,000 inpatients, 158,000 outpatients and 33,000 emergency room patients.