Difficult conversations with mom preceded 'volatile' situation at BC Women's Hospital, police say
The frightening situation that played out at BC Women's Hospital this week was preceded by difficult conversations between staff and a mother about her child, authorities said Friday.
Vancouver police spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison said he couldn't provide specific details about the conversations, citing the need to protect the mother's privacy, but that they concerned "the welfare of her child and access to the child."
"As a result of those conversations, her behaviour escalated to the point where it was extremely volatile and threatening, and a danger to not only herself but other very vulnerable people in the hospital," Addison said at a news conference.
Authorities received multiple 911 calls from within BC Women’s Hospital on Thursday morning, with reports that a patient had threatened staff and tried to break into a nursery. Officers arrived and shot a suspect with beanbag rounds.
She was seen being wheeled out of the hospital in restraints, then attended to by paramedics outside. Officials later confirmed she was not seriously injured.
Battered Women's Support Services told CTV News the woman is a vulnerable person in a situation that would trigger an emotional reaction in many mothers, and that she should have been approached with de-escalation tactics before officers opened fire.
"I don't believe that she was a risk to anybody," said executive director Angela Maria MacDougall. "I think she was angry. I think she was stomping around and yelling and was very upset."
MacDougall said her organization has been attempting to put the woman in touch with legal aid. Police expect to recommend charges against her to Crown counsel.
POLICE DEFEND USE OF FORCE
Asked about officers' use of force on Friday, Addison said they had received reports the woman was carrying a knife – but that officers eventually found her in possession of a different, undisclosed "edged weapon."
"We haven't said what that weapon is. I'm deliberately withholding that for evidentiary reasons," he added.
Authorities noted they were told a doctor had been chased in the hospital, and that staff had locked themselves in a nursery with babies during the tense incident. No one was hurt, however.
Addison said the circumstances justified the decision to quickly apply force, drawing a comparison to mass shootings in the U.S.
"This was a situation where it was an immediate, rapid deployment. We talk about Uvalde, Tx., Sandy Hook, other school shootings, other places where there's an active deadly threat," he said. "In a situation like that, we are trained to move immediately … we were not going to wait until somebody was killed or somebody was seriously hurt before we acted."
MacDougall disagreed with the comparison.
Much remains unknown about the events leading up to Thursday’s tense situation. Addison said the question of how conversations with the mother were handled will be among the topics discussed the next time Vancouver police meet with the local health authority for ongoing consultations on security and other matters.
"Not saying there is something that could have been done differently, but that's certainly (something) we will be engaging in conversations about," Addison said.
CALLS FOR HEIGHTENED SECURITY
The police incident was the second at the same hospital complex this week. On Monday night, an Amber Alert was issued after a woman took her son away from neighbouring BC Children’s Hospital. Hospital
The president of the B.C. Nurses’ Union called Thursday’s incident “deeply concerning.”
"How do you go back to a workplace where you were threatened with a weapon?" Aman Grewal said to CTV News.
“We’ve been talking about violence in the workplace for 30 years … it is not acceptable.”
Grewal said nurses are currently the ones who respond to “Code Whites,” which are called when there’s an aggressive or violent situation.
While many hospitals have security, Grewal said they usually aren’t equipped to handle more intense situations.
She said security staff should have the ability to make arrests, adding that nurses are “there to care for patients, not to be providing a security service.”
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