Sample Crisis Response

Situation: Mark Alexander, an employee for Pensacola General Hospital was arrested for
allegedly stealing pharmaceutical drugs.
KEY MESSAGES:
1. Mr. Alexander has been placed on immediate suspension.
2. In conjunction with the formal investigation, Pensacola General Hospital will conduct an
internal audit of the pharmaceutical inventory.
3. We are reviewing hiring/practicing policies to ensure we do not face circumstances like this
again.
OPENING STATEMENT:
Pensacola General Hospital is shocked at what occurred last night. Our chief of the pharmacy
was arrested for selling narcotics to undercover officers. Based on the nature of the incident and
with respect to all involved, Mr. Alexander has been placed on immediate suspension. Pensacola
General Hospital offers its full cooperation to the formal investigation and will conduct an
internal audit to determine the extent of Mr. Alexanders alleged theft of pharmaceuticals from
hospital inventory. We also plan to review and tighten up our hiring and practicing policies to
avoid another situation such as this one.
5 PROPOSED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:
1. Has this happened in the past?
Thankfully we have never faced a tragedy like this and plan to implement new procedures that
we may have missed with Mr. Alexander to prevent another occurrence.
2. How did he get away with stealing drugs?
At this time we are working with authorities to figure out what went wrong with our internal
inventory controls.
3. What type of drugs were taken?
Again, we are still receiving details of the arrest and have not completed our internal audit. Until
that is completed, we do not want to speculate.
4. Will Mr. Alexander be terminated?
Mr. Alexander has been suspended. This is still under investigation and until that is completed
we will not make that decision nor will he be back at work. At such time, the Board of Directors
will meet to discuss the future status of Mr. Alexanders employment.
5. Who is assuming Mr. Alexanders duties at the hospital?
In consideration of the sensitive nature of this situation, we have established increased security
and inventory controls in the pharmacy. We have appointed Mr. Goodboy as acting Chief of
Pharmaceuticals. He has been with Pensacola General Hospital for over 20 years.