Linton, Ind.-based Greene County General Hospital now has its own police department, 98.5FM reported Dec. 27.
The hospital has had a security force since 2013, but the on-site police unit will allow officers to react to threats more quickly, Chief of Police Bryan Woodall told the radio station. He hopes it will also be easier to staff and train officers for the hospital, he said.
"As time went on, it's getting harder and harder to find officers, there's a shortage of staff everywhere," Mr. Woodall said. "We're thinking and we're hoping that since we can establish our own police department, we can establish our own training. So we can hire them ourselves, we'll put them through the training here."
Six officers have been sworn in, and four more are expected to undergo the hospital's training program — which is modified because officers will be responding to more specialized incidents.