It is not only your valuables you need to keep an eye on in hospitals.
Undoubtedly the most publicised account of a baby being snatched in a maternity ward was the case of Micaela Hunter in 1994 at the Marymount Maternity Home in Kensington. The incident highlighted the general inadequacies in hospital security and led to a mass deployment of security measures with varying levels of success.
Trends indicate that most would-be abductors are females in the age range of 15 to 45 years and they are generally members of the surrounding community. While no official figures are available on the number of babies snatched from maternity wards, due to the fact that babies still go missing, albeit it on a much less frequent basis than previously, there are probably still a number of loopholes which need to be closed at a number of facilities.
Hi-Tech Security Solutions spoke to a private healthcare facility and a government healthcare provider to look at some of the measures in place to prevent baby theft as well as the accidental switching of babies.
Adapting existing technology
Life Kingsbury Hospital in Claremont in the Cape was one of the pioneering facilities to adopt baby tagging technology. Regan Beukes, regional marketing coordinator for Life Healthcare in the Western Cape, said that the system was installed 10 years ago, before he joined the staff.
“At the time of implementation, baby tagging was not well known in South Africa so the hospital was limited in its choice of technologies. It was decided that a Tyco tagging system using acousto-magnetic (AM) technology was the route to go. Sensormatic SA supplied the system, which was adapted from the method commonly used in retail outlets,” said Beukes.
This system comprises a completely waterproof electronic sensor which is taped on to the baby’s back. If the baby is carried through the two AM pedestals located at the entrance to the maternity ward an audible alarm is activated and the incident is automatically logged at the centralised control room. Immediate action will be taken by the hospital’s security staff and the perpetrator will be prevented from leaving the premises with the baby.
Jacques Graham, who was part of the original installation team, said that Sensormatic upgraded the system eight years ago to its current configuration and his company, Black Bird Trading, is now responsible for maintaining the system. “At the outset we had to determine what the best methodology of tag attachment would be. We originally looked at an armband which would be fitted with the tag. The problem here was that if the tag is bent in any way it is damaged and will be unable to accurately transmit a signal.
“Other challenges we faced were that the tag had to be completely waterproof since the babies receive daily baths. The final challenge, which was logistics and time-based, rather than technology dependent, was the installation of the wiring all the way from the top floor of the building down to the security desk on the ground floor. Thankfully, no other problems have been encountered since the installation and today the system provides a necessary link in the entire security portfolio.”
Beukes said that the system was accepted and adopted with open arms by the maternity ward staff. “When parents register to have their baby delivered at Kingsbury, the maternity ward staff explains all the security methods we employ to ensure the safety of their baby. They are reassured that the system is completely harmless to the baby, but if they are unhappy having their baby tagged we accede to their wishes and they simply sign a disclaimer to this effect. To date there have been few instances of parents refusing to make use of the system since, at the end of the day, one cannot put a price tag on the life of a baby.”
Beukes points out that while the baby tagging system is a huge deterrent for baby snatching, it forms just one element in a number of security measures in place at the facility. “We also have a number of CCTV cameras in place, together with a full-time security guard at the entrance to the maternity ward. In addition, the door can be opened only by a staff member entering a secret code into the keypad. Finally, we still make use of the standard arm- and wrist-bands, containing parent and child details, patient number etc, for all babies. Used together, these measures provide parents with increased peace of mind.”
Going public
Integrated security is a sentiment shared by Tygerberg Hospital (TBH) in the Cape, where a baby tagging system is currently being investigated. Faiza Steyn, director: communications office of the head of health, Provincial Government of the Western Cape Department of Health said: “The existing security measures currently being used, that is, dedicated security guards at maternity wards, access control, surveillance cameras at some maternity units and discharge protocols have proved sufficient to maintain the safety of the newborns and their mothers.”
According to Steyn the Western Cape Provincial Department of Health is “… currently merely exploring many different options including the electronic baby tagging to improve security measures around maternity units. After a baby went missing at our Tygerberg Hospital in 2010 this was a method which Theuns Botha, Minister of Health in the province, requested the department to investigate and to also determine the feasibility thereof. It has not been implemented.”
Steyn added that: “The disappearance of the baby in 2010 at TBH is an isolated incident. The outcome of the matter was that the nursing staff were cleared of all negligence and the baby was found unharmed. The matter was resolved by the SAPS.
“Obviously the public health sector services many more patients than the private sector and it would be important to explore the various options available; its affordability and its compatibility to other existing electronic and security systems already in place,” she concluded.
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