Hampden Medical Center rolls out Silver Sticker initiative to improve employee safety

Hampden Medical Center is improving employee safety and security by providing active shooter training sessions and identifying and marking safe rooms where employees can go to escape violence.

The Silver Sticker initiative builds on the Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement’s “run, hide, fight” safety protocol often used during intruder breaches, mass attacks and active shooter incidents.

Safe rooms can be easily locked, secured or blocked from the inside to keep an intruder out. They include rooms that can only be entered with staff access cards or codes. Adam Fooks, Hampden Medical Center security manager, and Tyler Runkel, security supervisor, assess each unit and common area in the medical center to identify appropriate safe rooms and mark the door frames with small, reflective silver stickers placed at a visible height.

To date, Fooks and Runkel have trained nearly 190 in-house staff and marked 105 safe rooms. Their goal is to ensure every employee receives this education. During in-house trainings, they discuss the “run, hide, fight” model and emphasize situational awareness, which includes encouraging staff to identify the safe rooms in their work areas and nearby work spaces, as well as exit locations. They also provide the active shooter training during new employee orientations.

Fooks, who has a military and private security background, knows this type of program can save lives. “It is the unfortunate reality that violent encounters, both in our personal lives and in the workplace, are becoming more common,” he said. “My hope is that our staff never have to deal with the scenarios we cover in the trainings, but by guiding them on how to survive violent encounters, they will have critical information needed to protect themselves and others if these threats occur.”

Jamie Wert, a licensed practical nurse in the Women and Babies Unit, recently attended an early morning safety training. “With changes in the workplace environment, it is really important that we acknowledge current threats and take steps like this to help staff adjust to these changes and better prepare to deal with potential security issues,” she said.

Department leadership can coordinate with Fooks to schedule training for any staff who have not yet participated. Sessions are scheduled to accommodate all shifts. Once Fooks and Runkel complete the first round of trainings, they plan to provide mini drills in the medical center to reinforce the initial training, and also provide some hands-on experience for situations such as barricading rooms.

Penn State Health launched the Silver Sticker initiative at Hershey Medical Center in 2021, and has been rolling it out across the system to community hospitals and clinics. Holy Spirit Medical Center security leaders are in the process of installing stickers, and are currently providing active shooter training and education about using panic devices and parking lot safety. To schedule training at Holy Spirit Medical Center, please contact Dan Rembish, manager of Security Services, or Brandon Onufer, security supervisor.

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