YNHH’s Protective Services presented annual Life Saving Awards to officers in October.
Last year, Yale New Haven Hospital’s Protective Services department responded to 143,671 calls for service at both the York Street and Saint Raphael campuses and off-site locations.
These included eight calls that showed how department staff use their communications skills, experience and compassion – and sometimes put themselves in danger – to help others. On Oct. 13, the department presented Life Saving Awards to staff involved in these calls:
Officers Miguel Bracero, Michael Falcigno and Randy Ireland used their communications skills to calm a person who was threatening a staff member. But when the person later pulled a knife on the officers, Bracero had to use other techniques to get the situation under control. The officers were honored for using their training and instincts and exhausting all other avenues of de-escalation to prevent life-threatening assaults.
Lt. James Burr responded to a call about a person in a parking lot who was threatening suicide. After a vehicle-by-vehicle search, Burr found the person, convinced them to get treatment and escorted them to the ED. Burr was honored for his extensive efforts to find the person, talk with them and help them access the care they needed with dignity.
Bracero and officers Wynn Allen, Gary Verni and Ray Long spotted a patient who had eloped from the Saint Raphael Campus (SRC) ED standing in the intersection of Orchard and Chapel streets. The officers tried to alert oncoming vehicles, but the patient was hit. While awaiting emergency medical response, the officers rendered first aid in the middle of the street. The patient was transported back to the ED for non-life-threatening injuries.
When someone in the SRC ED asked officers John Inglese, Jamie Axson and George Kurtyka how to get to the parking garage roof, the officers questioned the person and learned they wanted to commit suicide. The officers used their communications skills and compassion to convince the person to remain in the ED for treatment.
Officers Michael Ortiz and Giro Esposito were asked to perform a safety check on an ED patient. Ortiz escorted the patient to the restroom and noticed suspicious behavior. Ortiz and Esposito acted on their intuition and searched the restroom, finding a loaded handgun. New Haven Police arrested the patient.
Central communication officers Robert Ortiz and William Treffery received a request for a Rapid Response Team for a person fainting in the East Pavilion Cafeteria. Upon checking the cafeteria cameras, the officers felt the situation was more serious and the call was changed to an adult medical emergency. Thanks to the officers’ questioning attitudes and experience as trained observers, the person was treated for a cardiac event.
A York Street Campus Adult ED charge nurse told officer Brian Donnelly that a patient was acting suspiciously and might have a weapon. Officers Robert Farrow and John Rostkowski responded as backup while Donnelly searched the patient’s backpack. When Donnelly found a firearm, the patient tried to run, but the other officers stopped them and contacted police.
Officer Michael Hurley responded to a report of a person acting erratically on top of the Air Rights Garage. After a long conversation Hurley gained the person’s trust and learned they wanted to jump off the roof. Hurley convinced the person to seek help, and he and other officers escorted the person to the ED.
The Oct. 13 event also included a special Appreciation Award presentation to New Haven Police Sgt. Jasmine Sanders. The award recognized Sanders’ daily support and follow-up on workplace violence incidents impacting Protective Services officers and hospital employees. Protective Services Director Nicholas Proto said Sanders’ diligence with workplace violence cases resulted in an investigation closure rate of 94 percent.
