Don’t tase me, guard! Patient gets Tased, hospital gets cited

Federal and state health officials recently cited Northfield City Hospital for violating a patient’s rights when police used a Taser on him. He was confused and mentally ill, and hospital staff called the police fearing for the safety of others. But the citations and impending fallout, including possible loss of Medicare coverage, won’t change the Taser-use policies at Hennepin County Medical Center.

According to HCMC spokesperson Christine Hill, every Medical Center protection officer is required to carry a Taser while on duty. And, she says, security officers have had to deploy a Taser once on a patient. She doesn’t recall a time a police officer was called to control a patient. But all guards, including those patrolling the campus, carry Tasers.

The Minnesota Department of Health cited Northfield City Hospital for failing to protect the patient’s safety, according to the Star Tribune, after the mentally ill man was Tased by police. A nurse at the hospital called police because the man was talking about Jesus and poison in his blood, and she feared he would hurt someone. The citation for three violations, including the patient’s right  "to receive care in a safe setting," could dramatically impact hospital guidelines for Taser use across the state. Already, after international outrage about an elderly and infirm man who was Tased in his hospital bed in Canada, the American Psychological Association is looking to create new national guidelines for Taser use.

Hill says the incident and the APA’s decision to review Taser guidelines won’t affect HCMC’s policies. "Medical Center Protection Officers are security professionals trained to work in a health care setting to manage situations that pose a threat to the safety and security of visitors, staff, and patients," she says.  "When necessary, ECDs  [electronic control devices] would be deployed to restrain violent individuals who exhibit threatening behavior when alternative restraint tactics have failed. Protection Officers are trained to determine what level of response is necessary, while attempting to use the least amount of force needed to control the situation."

So far this year, two Minnesotans have died after being Tased.

More on Tasing here and here.

Photo by Brian Blackden; used with permission.