"Do hospital security guards carry weapons? "
As one who has visited friends and relatives in hospitals a lot of late, one thing I have noticed...hospital security is almost non-existent. Hospitals are an extremely vulnerable (and I would think tempting) target for terrorists.
At my hospital in Augusta GA a police guard (one of ours) shot to death a escaped prisoner in front of the emergency room yesterday afternoon. As for why terrorists would want to check us out...Cs-137 used in brachytherapy, Co-60 used in gamma knife (5700 Curries!), I-131, P-32, Sr-90, I-125, all kinds of neat poisons and explosive making stuff in our labs. Shall I go on?
In all of the instances reported, the security people were smart enough to press the issue, and the intruders fled.
Although, I do wonder how many of these people actually got through. The FBI has a very good chance here not to get caught flatfooted...again.
Where I live you can get entrance to the hospital thru the Emergency room any time after midnight by simply going in the door, it even opens automatically. From there its pretty simple to go anywhere you like simply by waiting till no one is looking and entering the main part of the building. No guard on duty there at all, armed or otherwise.
Its pretty rural here.