I wish this was the case but I doubt it. I know my facility has actual policies in place regarding employees carrying handgun while on duty, not to mention the 30.06/ 30.07 posting.jkurtz wrote:Would this mean that the ER/ED staff at a posted hospital would be exempt from the posting?Charles L. Cotton wrote:HB56 adopts the definition of "first responder" found in Health and Safety Code §161.001.
Chas.
H&S Code §161.001(1-a) wrote:Sec. 161.0001. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1-a) "First responder" means:
(A) any federal, state, local, or private personnel who may respond to a disaster, including:
(B) any related personnel that provide support services during the prevention, response, and recovery phases of a disaster.
- (i) public health and public safety personnel;
(ii) commissioned law enforcement personnel;
(iii) fire protection personnel, including volunteer firefighters;
(iv) emergency medical services personnel, including hospital emergency facility staff;
(v) a member of the National Guard;
(vi) a member of the Texas State Guard; or
(vii) any other worker who responds to a disaster in the worker's scope of employment; or
Those that have worked in an ED know the threat of gun violence against staff members and other patients are all too real! Look at what happened at Scott and White in Temple about 4 years back, and also what happened at Baylor Waxahachie just a few months ago.
It is also not uncommon for unsavory individuals that find their way into the ED with the idea of "finishing them off." In fact, that was one of the very first things I encountered this morning and had to go ensure the safety of my staff and the safety of the other patients all while my best friend was safely locked away.