Hospitals Improve Security After Attempted Newborn Ward Breach

A woman was escorted out of multiple hospitals in the area under suspicion of attempting an infant abduction.

Multiple hospitals in a Washington county have adjusted visitor policies after a woman attempted to enter areas with newborn babies recently.

People visiting birth centers at Tacoma General Hospital, Good Samaritan Hospital, Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital or Auburn Medical Center, which are all in Pierce County, will now be asked to sign in and show identification, according to komonews.com.

Visitors will also be escorted to the room they intend to visit by hospital security officers.

The new policies are a response to a woman’s repeated attempts to gain access to the newborn wards at hospitals in the area. The woman is not facing any charges but was escorted out of the facilities by hospital security.

RELATED: Woman Charged for Stealing Newborn Baby from La. Hospital

The woman was also captured on video surveillance cameras at St. Joseph Medical Center, and her photograph has been sent to area hospitals with a warning for hospital officials to stay vigilant.

According to a Tacoma Police Department spokesperson, the woman in question is known to authorities. She had a baby at one of the hospitals on Dec. 31, but the infant was taken into protective custody by Child Protective Services at the hospital, report Q13Fox. The woman keeps returning to look for her baby.

“The health, safety and security of our patients is our top priority,” a spokesman for the health care system for St. Joseph said. “We are closely monitoring the situation and are taking the appropriate measures to ensure that our patients remain secure.”

The woman has not been identified and is not a suspect in any crime.

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