TEWKSBURY — Officials in Tewksbury have expressed frustration this week over the removal of security tools from Tewksbury Hospital’s security team after another meeting with state health officials and another incident involving a patient.
After the Executive Office of Health and Human Services ordered the removal of tools like pepper gel, handcuffs and batons from the toolbelts of the Tewksbury Security Team specialists at the hospital, officials in Tewksbury were stunned, and immediately sought answers from the state.
After a meeting between state health officials and Tewksbury officials April 3, the day after the change was announced, those representing Tewksbury felt further frustrated by the state’s unwillingness to pause the change for more discussion.
Another meeting took place Tuesday, followed by officials learning of an incident that morning where a patient is now facing charges for allegedly assaulting staff, and both only added to the frustration, Select Board member James Mackey told The Sun Thursday afternoon.
“I’ve approached this from a collaborative stance, because I think that is how we get the most done, but after this second call on Tuesday we couldn’t get confirmation on any actions taken, other than that they are willing to listen and monitor the situation,” said Mackey.
It wasn’t until later that Mackey said they learned of the alleged assault that had taken place at the hospital Tuesday, which led to charges for the unidentified patient said to have attacked staff.
“I am not surprised by this Tuesday issue, I think we are going to see more of this,” said Mackey. “We don’t know what we don’t know, we do know there will be impacts.”
Mackey said he wants the Select Board to consider a number of options, even going as far as exploring the legality of withholding town emergency services, or a legal injunction.
“It’s extremely unfortunate… I hate to say I told you so, but everyone saw this coming,” said Mackey.
Tewksbury Hospital has beds for patients with a mix of cognitive and behavioral health challenges, including forensic patients with varying levels of involvement in the criminal justice system. This, and the hospital’s security, had been a point of contention in recent years after a number of assaults on staff and forensic patients (usually kept there through the courts) escaping the hospital grounds, requiring a police response. These issues led to an overhaul of the hospital’s security systems over the last two years.
On Friday the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association took it a step further by issuing a letter to Gov. Maura Healey formally requesting a “comprehensive review of recent security policy changes,” at the hospital.
“With 478 assaults reported on campus in 2025 alone, the risks are real and ongoing,” said the Tewksbury Police Department in a statement where they posted the MCPA letter. “Removing critical tools for de-escalation not only increases danger for staff and patients, but also places a greater burden on local law enforcement. We strongly believe any policy changes should be informed by the thorough security assessment already completed and guided by best practices in public safety.”
Massachusetts Nurses Association representative and Tewksbury Hospital nurse Ryan Wilkins said union members “are absolutely furious” at comments Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein allegedly made in the Tuesday meeting that the unions have been properly consulted in making this change.
“Contrary to Commissioner Goldstein’s claims, we have not been involved in these discussions,” said Wilkins to The Sun Thursday morning, noting that the MNA is requesting an emergency meeting to be held between Tewksbury Hospital nurses and state officials.
In a statement Friday evening, an EOHHS spokesperson said “The health and safety of patients and staff at our facilities is our top priority.”
“We are incredibly grateful to our staff members who prioritize patient care and safety even in the most difficult of circumstances. Updating the Tewksbury State Hospital security policy to eliminate the use of pepper gel and other weapons balances our therapeutic mission with our responsibility to keep patients and staff safe,” said the EOHHS spokesperson. “We are in close communication with local police and actively monitoring the implementation of this policy change to make sure our staff are equipped with the most appropriate tools and de-escalation strategies to keep themselves and others safe.”
State Rep. Dave Robertson, D-Tewksbury, said Thursday that he intends to bring a copy of the police report from the Tuesday assault to Gov. Maura Healey’s office to give her a better picture of the situation.
“It is exactly what we said to them Friday morning when we were all on our first conference call,” said Robertson of the incident on Tuesday.
“The justification seems to be a push on standardizing the campus, saying ‘Tewksbury doesn’t do this,’ but it is so ignorant of the reality,” said Robertson later.