| TL;DR: This guide compares hospital security companies offering solutions like AI-powered weapons detection, access control, trained guards, and integrated surveillance for healthcare environments. Included vendors are Athena Security, Allied Universal, Securitas Technology, Avigilon, and Evolv Technology. The guide focuses on their use cases, tech capabilities, pricing models, and healthcare compliance. You’ll also find a buyer’s checklist, analytics insights, and answers to common hospital security FAQs. |
We’ve all seen the headlines. Another healthcare worker assaulted. Hospital security breach. Another lawsuit. If you’re responsible for hospital security, you know the weight you carry.
Every security decision could mean the difference between a safe shift and a tragedy. And the truth? You can’t afford to get this wrong.
For anyone visiting your facility, security concerns should be the last thing on their mind. Your healthcare staff deserves to feel safe while saving lives. Your patients trust you in their most vulnerable moments.
That’s why choosing the right security company matters more than ever.
To help, we’ve curated a list of hospital security companies leading the industry in 2026.
A Quick Comparison of Healthcare Security Companies
Before we dive deeper into the details, here is a quick snapshot and comparison of hospital security companies:
| Security Company | Best For | Offering | Notable Clients |
| Athena Security | Unified, AI-powered hospital security. | Weapons detection system (WDS), hospital visitor management system (HVMS), AI X-ray, AR glasses, telepresence officers, and Zero Trust DNS (H-Shield). | Duke Health, Nuvance, and Yale New Haven Hospital. |
| Allied Universal | Large-scale on-site guarding programs. | Armed/unarmed guards, Heliaus® AI reporting, K9 units, CCTV, and access control integration. | Kaiser Permanente. |
| Securitas Technology | Electronic security systems. | Infant protection (Hugs™), access control, RTLS, video surveillance, unified SOC. | Canberra Hospital. |
| Avigilon (Motorola Solutions) | Advanced surveillance and incident response. | HD and 360° cameras, AI video analytics, Appearance Search™, and Motorola radio integration. | SSM Health and East Texas Medical Center. |
| Evolv Technology | High-throughput weapons screening. | Evolv Express®, Insights™ analytics, mobile threat reporting. | Virtua Health, Mercy Health, and Northwell Health. |
Hospital Security Companies Improving Healthcare in 2026
The comparison table gave you a snapshot. Now let’s get into what really matters.
We’ve vetted these five companies based on what actually happens on the ground. Each one brings something different to the table, but they all understand one thing: healthcare security isn’t about checking boxes. It’s about protecting patients, caregivers, residents, staff, visitors, and physical assets during their most vulnerable moments.
If you’re managing safety in a high-stakes hospital environment, these are the security companies you need to know.
Let’s start with the company that’s changing the game: Athena Security.
Athena Security: Best for Unified, AI-Powered Hospital Security
When it comes to hospital security, no company understands the real-world challenges better than us. Athena Security delivers a proactive, tech-forward solution built specifically for healthcare environments.
We are known for flexibility, innovation, and reliability.
Our multi-dimensional security solution—WDS + HVMS + AR + Telepresence + X-Ray + DNS Security—delivers more than basic detection. It delivers a robust frontline security that takes the burden off your shoulders, so you can focus on what you do best.
What This Hospital Security Company Offers
With Athena Security, here’s what hospitals actually get:
- Weapons Detection System (WDS): Walkthrough screening that uses Apollo 500 hardware with its proprietary AI interface, delivering 99%+ accuracy in catching concealed weapons.
- Hospital Visitor Management (HVMS): iPad kiosks that badge and track every visitor, with built-in watchlist alerts.
- AI-Assisted X-Ray: Real-time threat detection in bags with instant operator alerts.
- Telepresence Security Officers: Holographic displays that interact with visitors, enhancing their experience.
- AR Glasses for Security Officers: Silent visual alerts delivered directly into wearable glasses to officers on patrol.
- Zero Trust H-Shield platform: Our platform runs on H-Shield, which is designed specifically to protect patient data. It integrates with Epic EMR, meets HIPAA requirements, and creates the audit trail.
Watch how the system works:
Scalability and Customization
Our solutions are built for large-scale deployment. In 2023, a major healthcare network with 600+ sites installed 55 Athena systems across emergency departments. From custom-branded kiosks to centralized management dashboards, Athena’s platform adapts to each hospital’s operational needs, whether you’re running one site or 100.
Reporting and Analytics
With Athena Security, hospitals get full visibility into:
- Alarm rates and throughput.
- Visitor volumes by location or time.
- Staff response metrics.
- Threat detection trends.
One hospital used Athena’s analytics to optimize staffing around peak hours, improving both security and operations. Another used reporting data to demonstrate ROI to leadership.
Here’s how Duke Health is using Athena Security to enhance safety at all public hospital entrances:
Athena Security Overview
| Factor | Details |
| Location | Austin, Texas. |
| Primary Focus | Entryway security for hospitals, schools, and public facilities. |
| Customer Support | 24/7 support, custom integration, on-site training, bundled maintenance. |
| Pricing Model | $2,000/month rent-to-own (hardware), and $3,400/year service fee. |
| Notable Clients | Duke Health, Nuvance, Yale New Haven Hospital, and Jefferson Regional Medical Center. |
| Client Feedback | “Frictionless entry,” “Streamlined operations,” “Strong ROI.” |
Want to see how our visual AI and integrated security ecosystem can elevate your hospital’s safety strategy? Request a free demo below or call +1-866-592-3922.
Allied Universal: Best for Scalable On-Site Guarding Programs
When it comes to boots-on-the-ground security, Allied Universal is a great choice. As the largest provider of hospital security officers in North America, this hospital security company is often the first choice for healthcare systems that need a guard presence across multiple sites. With over 27,000 officers deployed at 5,000+ healthcare facilities, Allied brings unmatched scale and experience to hospital security.
Source: aus.com
What This Hospital Security Company Offers
- Manned Guarding: Armed and unarmed officers trained in hospital safety, access control, de-escalation, and patient interaction.
- Heliaus® AI Platform: Real-time incident tracking, smart patrol suggestions, and digital reporting via officer smartphones.
- K9 Units: Explosive and drug detection dogs for added security layers.
- Technology Integration: CCTV, access control, and emergency alert systems.
Scalability and Customization
Allied Universal is built for scale. They customize security plans around facility layouts, crime data, and patient needs. They also offer surge staffing, event security, and 24/7 coverage.
Reporting and Analytics
With Allied Universal, hospital leaders can monitor:
- Patrol routes and compliance.
- Incident trends by time and location.
- Response times and escalation patterns.
This data enables better decision-making and proactive safety improvements. Allied also conducts regular contract reviews with clients to adapt staffing as needed.
Allied Universal Overview
| Factor | Details |
| Location | California and Pennsylvania. |
| Primary Focus | Security officer staffing for healthcare, government, and commercial sites. |
| Customer Support | Local account managers, 24/7 national response center. |
| Pricing Model | ~$30–$45/hour per guard (estimated); technology bundles available. |
| Notable Clients | Kaiser Permanente. |
| Client Feedback | “Scalable and consistent,” “Strong presence,” “Mixed reviews on training.” |
Securitas Technology: Best for Hospital-Grade Electronic Security
If your hospital is dealing with fragmented security tech—one vendor for cameras, another for infant protection, and another for access control—Securitas Technology offers the unified solution. As one of the top electronic security integrators for healthcare, they bring everything under one roof.
Source: securitastechnology.com
What This Hospital Security Company Offers
- Infant Protection (Hugs™): Industry-standard solution for abduction prevention in maternity units.
- Access Control: Lock down sensitive areas with a badge or biometric entry.
- RTLS (AeroScout®): Real-time location tracking of patients, staff, and critical equipment.
- Video Surveillance: High-resolution cameras integrated with analytics, alarms, and access control.
- Unified Security Operations Centers: Centralize monitoring across hospital sites with SecureStat HQ.
Scalability and Customization
Securitas offers modular system designs and enterprise-wide control with SecureStat®, so multi-campus networks can manage everything from one platform. Every deployment is customized to match your building layout, risk profile, and compliance needs.
Reporting and Analytics
Hospital leaders get crystal-clear insights through SecureStat HQ dashboards, including:
- Camera uptime, access logs, and alarm histories.
- Location-based analytics (e.g., patient flow, asset usage).
- Guard patrol and incident tracking (when paired with Securitas guards).
Quarterly security reviews help clients refine their system, improve response times, and document ROI to executives.
Securitas Technology Overview
| Factor | Details |
| Location | Uniontown, Ohio. |
| Primary Focus | Integrated hospital security technology systems. |
| Customer Support | 24/7 service, full-time onsite techs, and preventive maintenance. |
| Pricing Model | Custom proposals with options for purchase, lease, or service bundles. |
| Notable Clients | Canberra Hospital (Australia). |
| Client Feedback | “Rock-solid tech,” “Reliable for infant protection,” “Responsive support,” |
Avigilon – Best for Surveillance with Motorola-Grade Reliability
Hospitals that want ironclad surveillance and airtight incident response can turn to Avigilon. As a Motorola Solutions company, Avigilon brings unmatched video clarity, powerful AI analytics, and seamless integration, all engineered for healthcare’s most sensitive environments.
Source: avigilon.com
What This Hospital Security Company Offers
With Avigilon, healthcare facilities get a robust video-first ecosystem built for speed, accuracy, and scale:
- AI-Powered Video Analytics: Features like Appearance Search™ and Unusual Motion Detection allow staff to pinpoint people or events across hours of footage.
- HD and 360° Cameras: Crystal-clear footage, even in low light or high-traffic areas like ER bays and parking garages.
- Motorola Integration: Alerts and analytics can route directly to Motorola radios and mobile devices, allowing coordinated, instant responses from security teams.
Scalability and Customization
Avigilon’s solutions work across a single hospital or an entire multi-site system. The company has the ability to unify thousands of endpoints under one intuitive interface.
Reporting and Analytics
Security teams gain real-time insights into:
- Entry events and badge activity.
- Camera system health.
- Incident heatmaps and behavioral anomalies.
With these insights, hospitals can reduce investigation time, optimize patrol routes, and respond to threats before they escalate.
Avigilon Overview
| Factor | Details |
| Location | Vancouver, Canada. |
| Primary Focus | AI-driven video surveillance and access control for healthcare. |
| Customer Support | 24/7 Motorola tech support, certified integrator partners. |
| Pricing Model | Custom per-project pricing. Software: $2,300 for 16-channel license. |
| Notable Clients | SSM Health and East Texas Medical Center. |
| Client Feedback | “Unmatched clarity,” “Streamlined incident response,” “Easy-to-use software.” |
Evolv Technology – Best for High-Throughput Weapons Screening
Evolv Technology offers hospitals a modern way to screen for weapons. Their AI-powered Evolv Express® systems allow staff, patients, and visitors to walk through security screening without stopping, preserving a welcoming environment while detecting firearms and large knives at key entry points.
Source: evolv.com
What This Hospital Security Company Offers
Evolv helps hospitals address the critical need for weapons detection at emergency departments and lobbies through:
- Evolv Express®: Free-standing scanners that screen visitors at walking speed.
- Evolv Insights™: Cloud-based analytics show how many people were screened, how many threats were detected, and when peak traffic occurs.
- Evolv EVA™: A mobile app for community threat reporting.
Scalability and Customization
Evolv Express systems are modular and mobile, making it easy to scale from a single ED entrance to an entire hospital network. Hospitals can configure system sensitivity by location, and add tools like Evolv Expedite™ (for automated bag screening) or Evolv EVA™ (a mobile app for staff to report threats).
Reporting and Analytics
The Evolv Insights™ platform gives hospitals detailed metrics on entry activity: how many visitors were screened, how many alarms were triggered, what types of weapons were found, and where.
Evolv Technology Overview
| Factor | Details |
| Location | Massachusetts, USA. |
| Primary Focus | Touchless weapons detection with AI-driven analytics. |
| Customer Support | Full onboarding, 24/7 support, remote monitoring, and training included. |
| Pricing Model | $16,500 per unit/year on multi-year subscription (varies by contract). |
| Notable Clients | Virtua Health, Mercy Health, and Northwell Health. |
| Client Feedback | “Staff feel safer,” “Fast and frictionless,” “Needs layered backup.” |
How to Pick the Right Hospital Security Vendor? A Buyer’s Guide
You’ve seen the options. Now comes the hard part. Making the right choice for your hospital. Use this checklist to evaluate every vendor in this article. Copy and paste it into a Word document, print it, share it with your team, and score each company honestly.
The one that checks your most critical boxes is your answer.
Hospital Security Company Checklist
- They’ve worked with hospitals before.
Question to Ask: How many healthcare facilities do you currently serve?
What You Need: Someone who understands HIPAA and other healthcare regulations.
- Their technology talks to your systems.
Question to Ask: Can you integrate with our existing access control and Epic EMR?
What You Need: Systems that plug into what you already use.
- They’ll customize to your specific risks.
Question to Ask: Show me a security plan you’ve tailored for a hospital like ours.
What You Need: Solutions built around your ED, maternity ward, and pharmacy, not a cookie-cutter proposal.
- They can assess what you’re missing right now.
Question to Ask: Will you conduct a risk assessment before proposing solutions?
What You Need: A vendor who finds your blind spots first.
- They give you data you can actually use.
Question to Ask: What reports will I receive, and how often?
What You Need: Incident trends, response times, and visitor patterns.
- Someone answers when you call at 3 AM.
Question to Ask: Who do I contact during a live incident after hours?
What You Need: A 24/7 command center or local representative.
- They’re properly licensed and insured.
Question to Ask: Can I see your current healthcare security licenses and liability coverage?
What You Need: Proof of credentials, then call two of their current hospital clients to verify.
- Their pricing includes everything you’ll actually need.
Question to Ask: What’s not included in this price?
What You Need: Transparency on systems, software, and support.
- They’ll still be around in three years.
Question to Ask: How long have you been in business?
What You Need: A stable partner who won’t disappear mid-contract.
Once you have shortlisted the right hospital security company, do the following 3 things:
- Schedule demos with your top two choices.
- Ask each for client references in similar-sized hospitals.
- Have your security team, risk management, and finance review together.
- Don’t pick the cheapest. Don’t pick the flashiest. Pick the one that solves your problems and proves they’ve done it before.
The right partner is out there, and now you know exactly how to find them.
What If Security Became Your Strongest Layer of Care?
In healthcare, every detail matters. From the moment a patient walks in, their safety is just as important as their treatment. Yet threats don’t announce themselves, and hospitals are being asked to protect more people with fewer resources and higher stakes than ever before.
Hospital security now is about preserving trust. The trust your staff needs to focus on patient care. Your patients and their caregivers need to feel at ease. And your community places in you every single day.
At Athena Security, we understand that responsibility. We’ve built technology that reflects the urgency and compassion that define healthcare environments.
Our mission? To help #SaveLives. Let’s make safety a core part of the healing environment.
Book a free demo or call +1-833-928-4362 to see how Athena Security can help you secure your hospital with empathy, intelligence, and confidence.
Frequently Asked Questions About Hospital Security Companies
Choosing the right security partner for your hospital can raise a lot of questions, and you’re not alone. Below, we’ve answered the most common questions healthcare leaders ask when evaluating security vendors, surveillance systems, and weapons detection platforms.
If your question is not here, call us at +1-866-592-3916. We’re happy to help.
1. What is Hospital Security?
Hospital security is a multi-dimensional system of personnel, technology, and procedures designed to create a safe environment for patients, staff, and visitors. It plays an important role in preventing crime, managing access, controlling traffic, protecting assets, and responding to emergencies such as workplace violence, theft, and cyberattacks.
2. What Are The Components of Hospital Security?
Some common components include patrols, surveillance systems (CCTV, alarms), access control (badges, visitor management), de-escalation-trained guards, and protection of high-risk areas such as pharmacies and neonatal units.
One critical but often overlooked component of hospital security is DNS security, which protects hospitals from reconnaissance, hijacking, and data exfiltration.
Athena Security addresses this gap with H‑Shield, a zero-trust, healthcare‑purpose‑built DNS security platform that adds authentication, visibility, and access control at the DNS layer without disrupting clinical workflows.
To understand why DNS security matters and how H‑Shield works, read our in-depth guide, DNS Security for Healthcare.
3. What is The Security Professional’s Role in a Healthcare Environment?
A healthcare security professional’s role is multifaceted. They are responsible for controlling access, responding to emergencies (medical, fire, code alerts), de-escalating volatile situations with patients and visitors, protecting valuable assets, and providing a reassuring presence.
In a way, their job involves balancing empathy with assertiveness to safeguard patients, visitors, staff, and property. They are often the first responders for various incidents.
You can enhance the effectiveness of your security personnel by equipping them with AR glasses that deliver real-time visual alerts silently, enabling discreet, hands-free communication during high-pressure incidents.
To see how AR glasses can support your security team, read our full article on The Best AR Glasses Security Officers.
4. How Can Access Control Improve Hospital Security?
Access control improves hospital security by using electronic systems (biometrics, key cards) to restrict entry to sensitive areas (pharmacies, NICUs, data centers), ensuring only authorized staff can access patient records and medical devices. This prevents theft, data breaches, and unauthorized patient interactions while enabling rapid emergency response and ensuring HIPAA compliance. These systems create audit trails, integrate with surveillance systems, and enforce role-based permissions, thereby protecting patients, staff, and valuable assets.
5. How Can Analytics Improve Hospital Security?
Analytics enhances hospital security by turning surveillance and access data into actionable insights. With AI and real-time monitoring tools, hospitals can predict risks such as patient falls, data breaches, or unusual visitor patterns before they escalate. These systems also automate compliance checks and help allocate resources more effectively, making security not just reactive, but proactive.
Athena Security’s platform takes this even further. Every screening is logged with timestamps, location data, images, and officer actions, creating a full audit trail. It tracks whether officers follow proper screening protocols, flags skipped steps, and helps measure deterrence by logging walkaways. Through powerful integrations and export tools, this data connects with your existing video, access control, or BI systems—so you can benchmark performance, spot trends, and optimize operations across every site.
Here’s what Eric Sean Clay, Former President of the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety, says about Athena Security.
“One of the things I really like about the Athena system is the ability to go in and really dig into the numbers. I can tell exactly how many people come into my facility at any given time. I’m able to catalog all the different types of weapons that we prevented from entering the facility. And then you can use that information in order to better educate people on the effectiveness of the system.”
6. Should I Rent or Buy a Hospital Security Solution?
The decision to rent or buy a hospital security solution depends on your facility’s specific needs, budget, and long-term strategy. Renting offers flexibility and lower upfront costs, while buying provides asset ownership and potential long-term savings.
Athena Security offers a rent-to-own model, where organizations make monthly payments (typically around $2,000/month for 4 to 5 years), after which they fully own the weapons detection system.
7. Why Choose Athena Security For Healthcare Security?
Athena Security is a strong choice for healthcare security because it provides a unified, AI-powered platform that integrates both physical and digital protection tailored specifically for hospitals. Many of our clients are healthcare organizations that have reported high satisfaction with our platform’s effectiveness in enhancing safety, streamlining operations, and supporting compliance.
8. How Can I Buy This System?
You can contact our team directly to discuss your hospital’s specific needs and receive a customized quote. You can email us at [email protected] or call us at +1-866-592-3922.
If you’d like to see the system in action, you can request a free demo below.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is based solely on publicly available sources and is intended for general informational and guidance purposes only. It should not be relied upon as a final decision-making resource or as a substitute for professional advice. While we strive for accuracy and completeness, we make no representations or warranties regarding the correctness, reliability, or suitability of the content. If you believe any information should be updated, corrected, or removed, please contact our team for review.
