An administrative law judge of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission has affirmed a citation and a a $12,471 penalty against a healthcare facility for exposing its employees to workplace violence, according to an article on the Business Insurance website.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Brooke Glen Behavioral Hospital’s facility in Fort Washington, Pa., for exposing its employees to the workplace violence hazard in the form of patient aggression.
BGH employs about 200 employees at its 146-bed inpatient psychiatric hospital in Fort Washington, with eight separate units that can accommodate a range of patient impairments such as depression and schizophrenia, according to review commission documents.
OSHA found at least 51 workplace violence incidents involving patients and staff in one year. This included 17 incidents of employees being punched, kicked or slapped; 16 incidents of bites or scratches; four incidents of employees being hit with an object; four incidents of spitting, hair-pulling, or grabbing; and 10 other physical injuries, including impacts to backs, hands and knees.
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