Cal-OSHA Fines Dignity, Kaiser $193K

The California Division of Occupational Safety (Cal-OSHA) and Health fined Kaiser Permanente and  Dignity Health more than $193,000 combined last month for exposing employees to undue hazards.

Kaiser's Vallejo hospital was fined $149,000 after three custodial employees were injured by used needles while attempting to dispose of them.

At least one deposit box frequently overflowed and was left open. In many instances, the needles were deposited without any caps on the tips. Kaiser has since replaced the single deposit box with two boxes, and they are now inspected every 30 minutes.

“Hospital workers are exposed to known hazards on a daily basis, and their employers have a responsibility to recognize these hazards and protect their employees,” said Christine Baker, director of the California Department of Industrial Relations.

Dignity Health's Northridge Medical Center was specifically cited for 18 different instances where employees were stuck with needles and there was a failure to fully document each incident, no procedure in place to review an injury log, or a way to solicit information from employees about the factors involved in each incident. There was also a failure to provide closed containers in the emergency room that would have kept hazardous waste from spilling out, a failure to provide hand-washing facilities for employees in the ER, and a failure to provide the appropriately sized gloves for employees using medication carts in the trauma room and after-hours intake area.

Dignity was fined a total of $44,125.

"California's health and safety requirements are some of the strongest in the nation, and they're meant to prevent hospital workers from becoming hospital patients," said Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum.