Threats to healthcare sector targets likely to stay 'elevated' amid cultural wars: DHS

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: ABC News

March 4, 2024, 5:05 AM

Threats to healthcare locations and those who work there are surging and are likely to stay "elevated," as a result of cultural and divisive issues like abortion, gender-related care and a hangover from debates caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, federal intelligence analysts said.

The brew of hot-button socio-medical issues litigated both in the public square and in the courts will "amplify the healthcare sector's visibility as a potential target for attack" by domestic extremists, according to a new briefing memo issued by the Department of Homeland Security on Feb. 26.

The confidential analysis, obtained by ABC News, describes a diverse array of dangers these mounting threats could pose: from harm to patients through compromised care, to causing a chilling effect on clinicians through harassment and intimidation, to ideologically motivated cyber attacks targeting healthcare providers and networks.

"Violent extremist threats against the healthcare and public health sector have diversified since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, and will likely remain elevated in the post-pandemic era due to the expansion of medical-related ideological grievances," the DHS bulletin said.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/threats-healthcare-sector-targets-stay-elevated-amid-cultural/story?id=107747192

[dutch777]

1. Like nurses and docs need more reason to retire early or just quit. ERs were already on the edge of chaos most days

I was a hospital administrator for the last 12 years before I retired. I was on the facilities management side not the medical side but one of the departments under me was Security. The daily reports I read of the abuse our officers had to get in the middle of between staff and patients or their families were hard to read. Some is from the understandable stress when a family member is seriously and unexpectedly sick or injured and the family wants to see them taken care of immediately. That is normal but especially during the winter flu and pneumonia season the ER was often overwhelmed and it was not unusual that all our regular hospital beds were full as well as the other major hospitals in the region. Patients were triaged upon arrival but waits for those not having heart attacks, strokes or bleeding out could be very long. And all this was before Covid. It was a daily occurrence that medical staff was punched or shoved and local law enforcement had to be called. I had one officer that had a chunk taken out of her forearm by a patient bite. She rode out the medical leave and quit when she was cleared back for duty. As patients were checked in and their personal belongings gathered, having a gun found was not unusual. I'd like to say this was in some rough inner city hospital but it was in a very affluent suburb of Seattle that has major business operations such Microsoft, Google, Costco, Boeing and many others as anchors in the community. Imagine what the medical staff in the rougher and tougher locales have to deal with each shift.

[Bayard]

3. Thanks for posting this personal experience

Wonder if this happens in other countries?

[SomewhereInTheMiddle]

4. On Youtube ...

a search for "doctor attacked by patient family" shows lots of instances caught on camera. They come from many different countries.

I have heard it is particularly prevalent in China, but that may just be the bias of the media I am consuming.

[IronLionZion]

2. It's terrorism

We as Americans should be against terrorism.

[Aristus]

5. OTOH, this is great news for the 'leeches, therapeutic bleeding, and horse-dung poultice' industry.

If we're actively going back to the Dark Ages in this country, we may as well lean into it.