07:00 The day starts with our shift change briefing: violent patients, equipment issues, etc. I pick up my personal access card, radio, and site keys.

08:15 I conduct a general walk-through of the property, starting from the 05th floor and working my way down through each ward to look for anything unusual. The stairwells are mag-locked. I verify these are working so no stray patients enter unauthorized areas.



08:50 My patrol checks the grounds for prohibited activity. I quickly test the parking equipment functionality.

09:30 On to the abandoned high school in the staff parking lot. It’s boarded up, but folks break in and party. I find a damaged window: someone may be inside. I radio my partner to meet me with large mag-lights. Our search reveals beer bottles and a makeshift bed… but no culprit. We call maintenance to re-secure the window.

  


11:23 A patient in the ER died. We’re responsible to bring the morgue stretcher so nurses can carry the body to the morgue. Once the morticians arrive, we escort them to the morgue, so they can transport body to the funeral home.

14:30 The overhead emergency bells sound CODE RED (fire alarm) in MRI. The alarm activates the fire lock-down system throughout the hospital, closing doors that are usually open to seal off a potential fire hazard. My partner and I split up. He relays info to the firemen at the entrance. I head for MRI to find the cause of the alarm. I have to keep on-lookers away from the actual magnet room. If one of them accidentally opens the door they can be seriously hurt (the magnet is approx. 30,000 times stronger than the earth’s pull and will send a pair of scissors flying across a room).

 


I discover the alarm was triggered by the smoke detector directly above the machine. There is no fire or cause for concern. I radio my partner so he can tell the fire department. I note the fire captain’s name, the truck numbers, and write a report.



17:45 Near the shift’s end, the Outpatients Psychiatric unit calls. My partner and I find a doctor and some nurses struggling with a patient who refused medication and locked himself in a washroom. The Dr. determined that the patient, a threat to himself, must be hospitalised for treatment. My partner and I manage to open the door when the patient becomes extremely violent. We gain control of his arms and begin to move him towards the Psych. Department.

   One of the nurses calls for a CODE WHITE (violent patient). Once the patient is outside the washroom, 15 Code White team members have arrived to help us. Despite the team, the patient still fights back violently. We transport him across the parking lot, up an elevator to the second floor.
When the police show up, the patient is restrained to the ground to re-group our team. Finally the patient is restrained to his bed. The Dr. gives him some medication. 20 mins have passed since the intitital call. We’re all exhausted. 02 agents received minor cuts and scrapes and are sent to the ER for a quick check up.


19:00 Finally the end of the shift! We finish our reports and brief the night shift on the day’s occurrences. We pass over the keys and radios and head home.