We’ve now reached two weeks since the NYC nurse strike began. Nurses continue calling for improvements to staffing, compensation, and workplace safety. At the same time, hospital administrators are feeling the weight of their own pressures. In recent years, healthcare systems across the country have seen a steady rise in violence inside clinical environments. That alone creates enormous strain.

But leaders are juggling much more: aging buildings, costly medical equipment, community expectations, reimbursement pressures, staffing shortages, and now heightened security risks.

Tough Truths About Nursing Today

Nurses, meanwhile, carry a significant emotional burden at the bedside. They care for patients who often arrive scared, stressed, or in crisis.  Patients, and their caregivers, are often at their most vulnerable during a hospital visit.  And nurses are on the front line during this time.  It can be a tremendous amount of emotional and physical labor.

As one leader put it, “For nurses… we are with a patient twenty‑four hours a day, seven days a week, three‑sixty‑five days a year” – Betty Jo Rocchio, Chief Nurse Executive, Advocate Health

When the environment itself feels unsafe, the anxiety grows even heavier.  Nurses have a lot to deal with and the statistics show why:

• 57 nurses are assaulted every day
• • That’s more than 2 per hour, totaling 1,739 per month
• 91% of ED nurses report physical violence within the previous year
• Total financial cost of violence to hospitals in 2023 was an estimated $18.27 Billion

The Specialized Demands of Healthcare Security

When it comes to security, hospitals are unusual in one important way: they are among the only places where people routinely sleep with their doors open, exposed to a public hallway. That level of openness is necessary for care but creates vulnerabilities unlike any in other sectors.

Security screening in hospitals is still a relatively new concept. Many leaders now find themselves asking:

• Should we screen?
• What should we screen for?
• How do we staff and support it?
• Will this solve everything—or is it just one layer?
• How would it fit in my building, on my floor, at an entrance door?

The reality is that security must be layered. Screening alone cannot stop verbal abuse, physical aggression, or behavioral escalation. It cannot eliminate the emotional strain of patient care. But it can help deter individuals who may be carrying weapons, detecting threats before they escalate.

Healthcare Leadership’s Role in Driving Safety Forward

The current strike, paired with newly passed workplace‑violence legislation such as New York’s S5294‑B, has pushed many healthcare leaders to look more deeply at how safety is managed inside their facilities. This isn’t just about compliance, it reflects a shift into a new era of healthcare security. Leaders are being asked to rethink long‑standing assumptions and build new pathways, thoughtfully and carefully.

In moments like this, it’s easy for administrators and security directors to feel isolated. They’re responsible for keeping thousands of employees, patients, and visitors safe every day.

This is where partnership matters. Not just equipment delivery, but experience. Not just technology, but guidance.

Reimagining Healthcare Security Through Evolv

Evolv has supported screening programs in more than 500 hospital buildings across North America, learning from diverse emergency departments, behavioral health units, and community hospital environments.

A few examples:

• Lee Health (Florida) screened ~220,000 people, identifying 160+ firearms and over 1,000 knives in a six‑month period
• This helped their security team to make data‑informed staffing and training decisions.
• Mercy Health (Midwest) implemented screening in multiple Emergency Departments to support staff safety without disrupting patient flow.
• Windsor Regional Hospital (Canada) screened ~100,000 entrants across two Emergency Departments in its first year, coinciding with a drop in ED nurse vacancy rates from 30% to 2.7%.

These are not claims of perfection. They show how screening has become one practical, adaptable layer in a broader safety strategy, deployed by leaders who are choosing to meet today’s risks with proactive measures.

Healthcare is entering a new chapter. Safety is no longer assumed; it must be shaped. And like any meaningful change, it requires collaboration, empathy, and steady support. If you’d like to discuss potential safety approaches, understand what layered solutions can look like, or connect with someone experienced in healthcare security transitions, let’s talk.