B.C. health authority fined nearly $275K after staff exposed to illicit substance

The exterior of Penticton Regional Hospital in Penticton, B.C., is seen in an undated image from Interior Health.

B.C.’s Interior Health Authority was fined nearly $275,000 after 10 workers were exposed to illicit substances at a hospital in Penticton.

WorkSafe BC posted the notice of penalty online, saying a fine of $274,073.89 was imposed on Aug. 1, providing some details about the incident.

“A noxious odour had been detected coming from a patient room and a service request was submitted,” the notice says, adding that two workers became ill and eight others were exposed.

There is no mention of what the substance was, exactly, but the notice says the health authority is being fined – in part – because “the employer's safe work procedure for responding to illicit substances had not been adequately communicated to workers, and they had not received training on the process to follow.”

In addition, WorkSafe found that procedures to prevent or minimize employee exposure were not implemented.

“This was a repeated violation,” the notice concludes.

The issue of drug use within hospitals and the possibility of health-care workers being at risk ignited several days of heated debate in the legislature last spring.

One solution that was proposed was ensuring all hospitals have safe consumption sites for patients who use drugs.