ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEMS
‘Yes, we need protecting from ourselves, and staff need a degree of control, but all too often suffocating environments tell you that you are an accident waiting to happen. Spaces can feel antagonistic and intimidating, when what you want is serenity and to feel safe. I worry about the consequences for the service-user who finds him or herself trying to recover in an environment not conducive to this.”
Enabling empowerment Katharine Lazenby – who has been a patient in mental health inpatient units for most of her adult life, and now works with the Peabody Housing Association to co- design and facilitate recovery-focused mental health training for staff, continued: “People in treatment should feel they have the ability to show their identity and to take control. Even small things can make a big difference.”
Another ‘expert by experience’ commented on how not having such basic freedoms as being able to unlock your own bedroom door was belittling. As a grown adult she found it difficult being made to feel like a child – a social regression when the simple fact of being ‘sectioned’ had taken away so many basic things often taken for granted. She commented on how it became a barrier to getting better, and went on to describe the lack of a genuine sense of privacy when securing her bedroom and her belongings, feeling she was a nuisance to staff who were busy elsewhere.
Addressing ‘basic freedoms’ With the acceptance of the significant impact that such factors and the resulting feelings have on both the overall service- user experience and recovery, modern electronic access control systems are now increasingly being adopted. These generally comprise three component parts: l A physical barrier such as a door. l An identification device such as a proximity reader, swipecard, PIN pad, or biometric (fingerprint, iris scanner) – although the biometric options are generally ruled out in mental healthcare environments due to sensitivity of personal data.
l Door controllers and associated software.
Early electronic systems have been around for decades, and are typically hard-wired, but this has posed major problems when they have needed to be retrofitted into existing facilities. “Such systems are almost impossible to install on a live ward, restricting them to new-builds or major refurbishments,” explains Safehinge Primera’s Philip Ross.
A step change
Safehinge Primera has accordingly developed a wireless solution which fits directly onto doors, and is linked to the company’s proprietary network of wireless access points and server-based control
THE NETWORK | JULY 2019
are far easier to install and maintain, as you don’t have to chase in or deal with hidden cables. They also have a typical battery life of 1-2 years, so it’s very much the direction we are seeing the market going in.”
Dr Phil Hammond, the after-dinner speaker at this year’s Design in Mental Health Awards Dinner (see also pages 11-17), and Katharine Lazenby, who spoke movingly in the 2019 DiMH Conference about some of her difficult and challenging times during stays in mental health inpatient units.
software. The wireless locks incorporate the company’s ‘tried-and-tested’ staff override systems, ensuring that this enhanced independence is matched with safety.
“The big challenge with traditional electronic access control systems is that they are not designed for the challenges of mental health environments,” explains Philip Ross. “Our approach to developing this system has been to take our life-saving anti-ligature and patented anti-barricade override technology and integrate it with an electronic access control system. By stark contrast, other systems take hard-wired or wireless locking systems – designed for hotels – and make token gestures towards safety, adding lever handles at 45 degrees. We’ve seen these systems fail within months, due to lack of robustness or lock tampering, with no meaningful staff override. Our latest systems use wireless technology with battery-operated locks on the doors. These
Five-way staff override Claimed by Safehinge Primera to be the market’s only anti-ligature electronic access control solution designed specifically for mental health facilities, the company’s Passport lockset system enables service-users to access and egress spaces, but incorporates the company’s five-way staff override feature to ensure access in an emergency. Continuous Improvement manager at Safehinge Primera, and another of the company’s electronic access control specialists, Kevin Addie, explains: “Wireless electronic access control systems are a massive change in the service offering within mental health facilities. As well as empowering the service-user, they give staff the ability to audit services, as each system provides ‘live news’ for each event. Every single lock is also an access update point, so any system changes to people or credential permissions happens instantly. Traditionally, staff either had to go around and programme permission changes to each lock manually, or go to a specific gateway and change them there. Our system is unique in that updates are instant – something we believe is critically important in environments where security and safeguarding are paramount.”
‘The sky’s the limit’
The audit trail data and system events are stored both on a local server and to a cloud-based hosted service, allowing multi- site configurations and management. Supporting remote access for system diagnostics and support, the cloud system is GDPR-compliant, and conforms to the UK Government’s ‘cloud-first’ policy. The information that the system gathers is not
Victor Muniz at Ryder Architecture used Safehinge Primera’s electronic access control at Cornwall’s first CAMHS facility, the Sowenna Unit, at Bodmin Hospital.
Philip Ross, Commercial director at Safehinge Primera, says: “We are seeing more mental health providers adopting electronic locksets, and recognising the positive impact these modern systems can have on recovery.”
Safehinge Primera Continuous Improvement manager, Kevin Addie, maintains that wireless electronic access control systems are ‘a massive change in the service offering within mental health facilities’.
Martin Lees, a Safehinge Primera Electronic Access Control manager, says: “Traditional metal key systems are not only unnecessarily restrictive, but the keys are a risk, as they can be used to self-harm or to injure others.”
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