With new technology, Public Safety is talking the talk

Bridgeport Hospital recently upgraded its security communications, becoming the first Yale New Haven Health delivery network to use digital radios that connect multiple offsites.

The radios work with digital repeaters, electronic devices that extend transmissions so signals can cover longer distances. The technology allows security officers to communicate across locations. The new radios connect security officers at Bridgeport Hospital to their counterparts at the Milford Campus, Park Avenue Medical Center and Greenwich Hospital.

Because the radios are available even when there is limited phone service or phone lines are disconnected, they can curb any response delays during emergency situations. If the digital repeater goes down, the radios can work as walkie-talkies, so critical communication never stops.

“It leads to faster response times, officer safety and, in a communication failure, keeps a functional communication channel open,” said Mark Larobina, regional director of Public Safety for Bridgeport and Greenwich hospitals.

Security officers at each location now carry the digital radios.