Atlantic Health System was ranked 4^th in a list of 81 hospitals selected by Security Magazine in its annual survey of companies throughout the United States with the best security programs.

Each year, Security ranks 500 companies, broken down by business sector. In the magazine’s recently released 2012 rankings, Atlantic Health System was the only New Jersey-based organization in the list of companies in the hospitals/medical centers category. This is the fifth consecutive time Atlantic Health System has been named to the Security 500, and the third time it has been named among the top 10 hospitals/medical centers.

Atlantic Health System outranked many nationally-recognized hospitals whose security programs have staffs two to five times larger than that of Atlantic Health System. Only the Cleveland Clinic, the University of Texas at Houston and Massachusetts General were ranked higher, while Atlantic Health System outranked other hospitals such as Brigham & Women’s Hospital and New York Presbyterian Hospital.

Alan Robinson, director of protection and security services and emergency management for Atlantic Health System, noted that the magazine rankings were based on the efficiency and preparedness of each security program, despite size.

“It all comes down to the staff, planning and the training you build into a security program,” Robinson said. “Being ranked among such prestigious organizations is high recognition of the quality and effectiveness of our security staff and program.”

The protection and security services department’s “Red Cell” program, which was recognized by the Joint Commission this year among a list of best practices in health care security, is among the examples of the department’s preparedness initiatives. The program includes regular infiltration testing, in which undercover security agents attempt to gain unauthorized access to sensitive areas of Atlantic Health System facilities, in order to identify and prevent potential breaches.

Aggressive training extends not only to security staff, but hospital staff as well. In an industry in which 70 percent of the workforce is female, and homicide is the leading cause of death, Atlantic Health System has taken the lead in training staff, such as nurses in self-defense, self-escape and other preventive measures.

The protection and security services department has also created plans for a number of crisis scenarios, and holds drills with both security and health care staff to prepare for those possible events.

“Health care is an industry that is ever-changing but always high-risk,” Robinson said. “Extensive planning is important, but only through training and drilling at all levels do those plans truly make a difference.”

Atlantic Health System’s security force oversees approximately nine million square feet of facilities throughout New Jersey, primarily located at Morristown, Overlook and Newton Medical Centers and Goryeb Children’s Hospital. The department has a senior staff with 300-plus combined years of experience in law enforcement, investigation, security, fire safety, regulatory compliance and emergency management, and utilizes state-of-the-art technology to keep staff, patients and visitors safe.

For more information about Atlantic Health System, visit atlantichealth.org

To view the 2012 Security 500 rankings, visit: http://www.securitymagazine.com/ext/resources/2012/November-2012/2012-S500-for-Issue-alpha-order-landscape.pdf

To view Security Magazine’s Leader Profile of Alan Robinson, visit: http://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/83686-security-500-leader-profiles?page=15 (login required)

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