The mother of a young psychiatric patient, who was killed at the Saint John Regional Hospital in February, protested outside the hospital on Friday.

Rose Perry was carrying a sign, urging people to sign her petition, which calls for more security in the psychiatric ward to protect patients.

Her daughter, Serena Perry, 22, was found dead in the hospital's amphitheatre on Valentine's Day.

No charges have been laid, but Police Chief Bill Reid has said they are treating the case as a homicide and have a male suspect in mind.

Serena Perry was found in the hospital's amphitheatre. (Courtesy of Castle Funeral Home)

Rose Perry says she was told by investigators her daughter was strangled after leaving the psychiatric unit with a male patient.

She wants answers about her daughter's death, she said, but she also wants security improvements at the hospital, including a guard at the psychiatric unit.

"There's a book, a petition going, just to make people safe in the hospital to ah … they will never, ever go through a tragedy that I went through and my other two daughters, Tasha and Melissa Perry," she said.

"I know they’re going through a hard time, my daughters.

"I just don't want it to happen again, that's all."

Saint John police officers were called to the hospital on Friday, but after a brief talk with Perry and two female supporters who were protesting with her, the officers left.

Perry persuaded some passersby to sign her petition, but how many is unclear.

"God bless you, God bless you, God bless you," she said to one woman who signed.

Some motorists honked in support as they drove by.

Perry described Serena as someone who would give anyone the shirt off her back, or the last $5 in her pocket.

"She was not a retard," she stressed.

"It was just something that happened when she was a little girl," she said, refusing to elaborate. The details will come out at a later date, she assured.

No change in policies

The hospital reviewed safety protocols following Perry's death, but no policies were changed, Horizon Health officials have said.

Psychiatric patients are safe, department head Dr. Rachel Morehouse told CBC News.

"It really is a top-notch, good place to be. If you are ill. If you need help. If you need therapy. If you need the very best of care. It is safe and secure and I have nothing but good to say about it,” she had said.

Many patients in the Saint John Regional Hospital's psychiatric unit are free to come and go, just like anyone else in the hospital. They can leave the unit to go for a smoke, visit the cafeteria, or just to stretch their legs.

The Saint John Regional Hospital is the province's largest hospital, which thousands of people pass through every day.