Lee Health Uses Data-Driven Weapons Detection Powered by Evolv to Tackle Provider and Patient Safety in Its Emergency Departments

When Robert Sherwood, the Director of Public Safety Technology & Community Based
Care at Lee Health, joined the nonprofit healthcare system based in Southwest Florida 13
years ago, its security systems looked much different than they do today. Since he joined the team, Sherwood has led Lee Health in implementing various technology initiatives to improve security and safety. Despite various advances in security processes, significant gaps remained. For several years, Lee Health relied on handheld metal detectors to screen for incoming weapons. However, the security team was unable to check everyone for weapons.

Knowing they wanted to institute a weapons screening solution, the Lee Health team went in search of a better approach. The team did a lot of research online and identified several different technologies that included Evolv. Ultimately, there were three reasons why Lee Health selected Evolv - data and analytics, seamless traffic flow, and Evolv's footprint.

Since deploying Evolv, Lee Health has seen high rates of weapons being detected in its
Emergency Departments. This is something that Sherwood and the team aren’t necessarily shocked to see in Florida, but are surprised at the numbers nonetheless, as it reflects what may have been previously entering the hospital campus unknowingly.

For the second half of 2023, Lee Health detected 157 guns and over 1,000 knives. “We’ve screened over 222,000 patients and visitors with Evolv to date,” Sherwood reports. “It was mind-boggling to see the first monthly report that we generated with Evolv Insights. I saw the number of weapons we detected, and I thought, ‘Wow! This system is amazing.’”

Hear their story on how Evolv Express® and Evolv Insights® has helped Lee Health to:

• Find 160+ guns and 1,000+ knives in the second half of 2023 alone
• Screen over 220,000+ patients, visitors, staff, and providers since deployment
• Achieve a 44-second clear rate for secondary screening
• Analyze traffic flow and threat detection analytics daily and monthly

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