HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The clinical staff at Hutchinson Regional Medical Center is participating in two days of Active Shooter Response Training.

Five law enforcement officers — two from the Hutchinson Police Department and three from the Reno County Sheriff’s Department — are in charge of training 500 staff members from the hospital.

Wes Hoyt, Chief Operating Officer for Hutchinson Regional Healthcare System, explained why the hospital felt a need for this type of training. In today’s environment, he says it’s necessary:

 

Hoyt says there’s a balance when it comes to security and making the hospital an inviting place for patients, families and other members of the community:

 

In the training, an officer fires a starter pistol while walking the halls of a closed-off hospital ward. Officials cleared the ward of patients and tested decibel levels to ensure the training was not disruptive to other patients in other wards.

The training is closed to the general public.

Ken Johnson, President and CEO of Hutchinson Regional Healthcare System, said the Active Shooter Response Training was not precipitated by threats or suspicious activity within the hospital campus, but is what he termed: “proactive training.”

The training runs from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, with a break over the noon hour.

Hutch Regional is not the first to do this type of training. Police say other businesses — large and small, as well as some churches — have also gone through this type of training.