David Y. Ige

Hawaii Department of Health places seven hospital employees on off-duty status without pay pending investigation

HONOLULU – The Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH) is placing seven Hawaii State Hospital employees on off-duty status without pay pending the investigation of the escape of a patient on Nov. 12. The hospital employees are being notified and will be relieved of their duties for 30 days as the internal investigation continues. As the investigation progresses, more employees may be identified and placed on off-duty status.

The department is committed to a thorough investigation, evaluation and correction of our hospital protocols and procedures to prevent this type of incident from reoccurring. In addition to placing employees on off-duty status, all unescorted on-campus and off-campus privileges have been stopped, visits to Kaneohe Clubhouse have been suspended, all staff have been retrained on the accountability process, security staff have been reassigned, all levels of patient privilege and visitation policies are being reviewed, additional unannounced patient area searches are being conducted, and procurement of additional security fencing is being expedited.

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MEDIA CONTACT:
Janice Okubo
Communications Office
Phone: (808) 586-4445