Both concern and cautious optimism greet news that the Hawaii State Hospital is replacing — finally — its 25-year-old analog surveillance systems and going digital. Here’s the concerning part: Some of the old stuff overseeing the Kaneohe psychiatric hospital’s 200-plus patients hasn’t even been operational — old cameras not working, for instance, because repair parts can’t be found.

Hospital employees have reportedly complained for years about the faulty system, including perimeter and internal surveillance, jeopardizing the safety of patients, staff and the public. It’s fortunate indeed that more escapes haven’t occurred — a la the infamous walk-out in November 2017 by Randall Saito, who wasn’t reported missing for at least eight hours and made it to California before being recaptured.

The hospital’s August upgrade for more than 300 new cameras and other digital equipment surely will be worth the $560,000 investment. The human component for better security also has been bolstered, with the doubling of security guards to 30 and increasing staff levels to one to two workers per patient. With safety a longstanding issue at the overcrowded, aging facility, all staffers carry a personal alert device to enable reporting of a problem with the press of a button.

These strides on trouble detection should help lessen community concerns of escapes by the seriously mentally ill patients committed there by the courts. The most significant upgrade for the safety of all, though, will be the new $160.5 million forensic building now under construction, which will add 144 psychiatric beds when completed in December 2020. Still, any facility or security system will be only as good as the people who run it — so finding a new top-notch state hospital director, a job vacant since May, will be imperative.