A man who triggered a security concern at East Tennessee Children's Hospital has been identified as a resident at UT Medical Center.
Hospital employees stopped the man, who was wearing green scrubs, as he tried to enter a medical unit on Wednesday. He did not have the proper credentials to be in the area, and left before he could be questioned further. Hospital security did a sweep of the hospital and alerted other hospitals in the area.
Once officials tracked the man down, they learned that his mentor had encouraged him to learn more about pediatrics, but he did not go through the proper channels to get access to the hospital.
"Even though he is a resident at another hospital, he is not credentialed at Children’s Hospital, nor has he ever applied for a job here," said Seth Linkous, Director of Marketing for Children's. "We have strict access control at Children’s Hospital and any medical staff member is issued a Children’s Hospital name badge with a photo, department and position; the staff member is also required to complete appropriate orientation."
Linkous said the hospital's security department does not currently view the man as a threat to the hospital.
"Strict security measures are in place to protect the well-being of our patients and their families, visitors and hospital staff. Those measures were successful in preventing this individual from gaining access to an unauthorized area," said Linkous.
Original story:
A “suspicious” man dressed in green scrubs tried unsuccessfully to get into the patient care area of East Tennessee Children’s Hospital Wednesday morning, according to an ETCH spokesperson.
In a statement, Erica Estep, the hospital public relations manager, said the man was not wearing a required hospital ID badge and couldn’t present any ID when staff asked for it, so he wasn’t allowed into the facility.
Hospital security did a sweep of the building but didn’t find the man, according to Estep.
Children’s Hospital security alerted other area hospitals, Estep said in a statement.
She said hospital staff had been notified of the incident and given a photo of the suspect, but they did not plan to release surveillance footage to the public.
