'It's a failure somewhere,' Western State Hospital staffer reacts to patient death after jumping or falling from construction crane on campus
KING5.com••nation
Key Points:
- A patient at Western State Hospital in Lakewood died after accessing a construction crane on the hospital’s property and falling from it; the patient had not returned from court-ordered unescorted grounds privileges.
- Hospital staff expressed sadness and concern over the incident, citing apparent security failures at the construction site, which is part of a new 350-bed hospital project managed by Clark Construction.
- Western State’s CEO confirmed the death and noted that local authorities are investigating, while the Department of Social and Health Services extended condolences and is following protocols for unexpected patient deaths.
- The incident highlights ongoing safety challenges at Western State Hospital, which lost federal Medicaid accreditation in 2018 due to multiple deficiencies, including facility safety issues and high rates of assaults
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