Kaiser Permanente fined $18K by OSHA for MRI accident

Kaiser Permanente faces an $18,000 fine following a serious MRI accident at one of its hospitals in Redwood City, California.

According to a story in The Daily Post, the magnetic field of an MRI machine unexpectedly pulled a metal bed and a nurse several feet across a room, resulting in severe injuries to her pelvis, right leg, and abdomen. She required several days of hospitalization before recovering. 

The accident occurred when the nurse was moving a metal bed toward the MRI room where a door was accidentally left open. Both the nurse and the bed were suddenly pulled towards the MRI machine, where she became crushed between them. 

In response to the incident, Kaiser said it has implemented safety measures, such as posting warning signs between prep rooms and MRI rooms. The organization also told The Daily Post they are conducting a deep dive into corrective actions to prevent similar occurrences. 

Additionally, according to the coverage, the hospital's chief executive nurse met with the injured nurse's family to offer support and assistance. 

Kaiser was fined $18,000 by OSHA for not having a proper plan to ensure that the door between the preparation area and MRI room remained closed.

Fiberglass Pipe Manufacturer Cited; 74K in Penalties

Pipe Manufacturer RPS Composites Alabama Inc. was cited following an inspection sparked by a finger amputation at the facility.

On the initial investigation, OSHA investigators found that a lack of machine guarding caused an employee's gloved hand to become caught into a pipe winding machine causing a finger amputation.

A subsequent investigation of the facility resulted in 10 serious and 2 other-than-serious citations for multiple violations including: Machine Guarding, Lockout-Tagout, and Combustible Dust. The company is facing over $74,000 in proposed penalties.

OSHA has requirements for machine guarding in 29 CFR 1910.212

All machines are required to be guarded in order protect workers from: point of operation, ingoing nip points, rotating parts, and flying chips and spark hazards.

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