Worries me that it takes a shooting disaster to address security at federal sites

[rainbow4321]

I say that because I work at a federal health care facility that anyone, and I do mean anyone, can walk in and take aim at people.
The place I work at has multiple entrances, no security checking anyone at those doors. And the entrances all lead to massive areas where there are large packed waiting rooms all day that are filled with people.
The population we serve are vets. All ages, all kinds of problems, physical/psych, etc. There is nothing to keep someone angry with the system to show up loaded with items to harm people.
It's the only VA hospital I have worked at but others who have worked at other VAs say our situation is not the norm. That at others there is security at the doors and if you are seen anywhere in the place with no worker badge or visitor badge you are stopped and questioned. Pfffft. Not with us, people come to just stay and hang out, no questions asked, you'd think you were at the local mall.
My coworkers and I do talk about the lack of security but when we see a tragedy at other federal places and how the news and viewers are shocked post-shootings about poor security at fed places we all think "um, clearly people are under the false impression that all federal places HAVE security". And yes, after each tragedy we say "why do we feel like sitting ducks...they won't give us any real security til something happens and then the VA will act shocked that someone could get in here armed to the teeth"

[Wounded Bear]

1. They're too busy using shooting disasters as fodder for NRA ads...

[MineralMan]

2. What security measures would you like at

your federal healthcare facility? And why just at federal facilities? Every public place that is open to, well, the public, has similar security issues. How far would you like these to go at your facility, and what should be done at non-government facilities?

Such incidents as the one that happened at Ft. Hood are very, very rare. Why would your facility be more likely to have such an incident, compared to other facilities?

[spin]

3. I agree. You definitely need security guards and in my opinion they should be armed. (n/t)

[rainbow4321]

4. While we have the VA police

They are not at all the enterances. One enterance has a main desk and he or she sits there as the throng of people come and go. No checkpoints or random searches nothing. Even if we call them from the wards it takes a bit for them to get up there cuz the place is so huge.
The waiting room atrium for the clinic area is accessible to everyone, and it is packed all day.
Access to the wards where patients and staff is just an elevator ride away, no "who are you here to see" or anything.
It just gets you thinking with such a high risk population, especially nowadays, that they would do some kind of security eval and make improvements. But I guess like all places, it's more of a reactive than proactive place.

[spin]

5. I hate to mention this but you probably have already thought of it. ...

You might be a terrorist target.

You are basically in a gun free zone. I have no major problem with gun free zones but in my opinion any such area where a large number of people congregate or work should have armed security
in-house. That reduces the chance that it might be viewed as a target of opportunity by a terrorist or a person with severe mental issues.

If armed security is present in the hospital, they can respond much faster than the local police and are familiar with the building. A armed security guard might stop a massacre in its early stages. It is also possible the presence of armed security would totally deter such an attack.

Of course such security is expensive. Perhaps we could finance this expense by slightly reducing the budget of some our our government agencies such as the NSA.

Unfortunately our government is most often reactive rather than proactive. If an attack ever does occur in a VA hospital (which I hope and pray never happens) you will definitely get good security.