STOCKHOLM SYNDROMELessons learned in hostage taking
by Melissa YiAKA Melissa Yuan-Innes, M.D.
April 2013Fact: My first night shift at a new hospital.Fact: A
prisoner escapes while awaiting medical attention.Fact: I chase
after him through an empty hallway and stairwell.Lesson learned: I
could have been taken hostage.
CBC Radio Ottawa Morning
interviewhttp://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2682896718
September 20th, 1991Richard Worthington storms into a Salt Lake
City hospital with a shotgun, a .347 magnum revolver, and a
bomb.Dr. Curtis ruined everything! He butchered my wife!He takes
two nurses hostage, shoots one, and breaks into a room where a
woman, surrounded by her family, is about to deliver her first
baby.Lesson learned: life can turn in an instant.
So now I knew what I wanted to write about: a hostage taking in
an obstetrics ward.But first, I had to return where it all began:
St. Josephs, a fictional Montreal hospital.
Some things had changed since I last delivered a baby.All fetal
heart tracings are now electronic.They use cord blood gases on
every delivery.
But what about hostage rescue?I interviewed a doctor who works
with the police. Tactics are confidential, but1. Watch these two
movies:SWATnot super realistic, but general tactics are therefirst
5 minutesTHE INSIDE MAN (hostage in bank)prolonged hostage
situation2. How long does it take to assemble a tactical
team?Depends on which community. Toronto is 24/7.3. Is it possible
theyll negotiate instead of laying a siege?Yes, unless the
hostage-taker is actively firing. Thats a lesson learned from
Columbine.But, as in Paris grocery attacks, if 4 people are dead
but 20-30 more are alive, assess risk & could negotiate.
I dont know guns.So I had to visit a gun club. What does gun
power smell like?Answer: fireworks
After the hostage-taker fires the gun and presses the muzzle to
Hopes temple, would it be warm or cool?Answer: cool.
Next, I visited a private security expert.In our area, it is
legal to fire on a gun on private property.
www.melissayuaninnes.com/
colt_45_sound_fx_.wmv null0Other24084.98eng -
