YORK COUNTY — Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center announced it has installed a weapons detection system at the main hospital entrance to ensure the safety of patients, staff and visitors.
The system, launched last month, is overseen by Sentara security officers who are armed with firearms and TASERS. The officers are certified by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services.
“Given the national trends we are seeing, we are preemptively taking measures to keep weapons out of the hospital,” said Beth Cumbie, director of nursing and patient care services. “We are doing everything we can to create a safe, healing environment at Sentara.”
According to one study Sentara cited, about 70% of workplace violence occurs in healthcare or social service settings.
To enter Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center, patients, staff and guests now need to walk between two stanchions that are about four feet high. A display alerts the security officer if a possible weapon is detected, in which case the officer can do a secondary screening with a wand, Sentara explains.
The system can be overseen by one security officer but often has two during peak times, it added. It detects firearms, knives and other weapons.
“We’ve had a lot of very positive feedback,” added Cumbie. “Our consumers comment that they appreciate and understand the need for the extra security measure.”
The rollout of a weapons detection system at the hospital’s main entrance follows the launch of a similar system at the Emergency Department entrance in the fall of 2024. All 12 Sentara hospitals are scheduled to have the systems at all entrances by early 2026, the system said.
Weapons detection augments the hospital’s visitor badging system, which requires all visitors to present a photo ID and have their picture taken for a one-day visitor badge, to be worn visibly at all times, it added, noting visitor badges “have been shown to create a more respectful environment and reduce incidents of verbal or physical abuse against hospital staff.”
