DULUTH — Essentia Health was recently cited for six serious violations by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry. The Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic 2nd Street Building at 502 E. Second St.
was inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Division on April 11. The issuance of the citations and notifications for penalties totaling $27,300 was given on July 30 by the department’s Commissioner, Nicole Blissnebach. ADVERTISEMENT According to the document, Essentia didn’t provide adequate eye protection for lab employees who were working to prepare 24-hour urine collections and pouring corrosive chemicals such as acetic and hydrochloric acids.
Goggles were also not provided to those working in the maintenance department who were pouring corrosive chemicals such as So-Drox. For this violation, Essentia was fined $4,200. According to the second citation, specific emergency eyewash stations weren’t provided for employees exposed to injurious corrosive materials, resulting in a $4,200 penalty.
In a third citation, Essenta did not provide Environmental Services employees with tongs or forceps to eliminate or minimize occupational exposure to needlestick injuries, resulting in a $4,900 fine. The fourth citation stated that sharps containers were not replaced routinely and were allowed to be overfilled at the Duluth clinic’s third-floor lab and two restrooms, resulting in a $6,300 fine. The fifth citation was for failure to provide bloodborne pathogen training to an Environmental Services employee and a maintenance employee.
The annual bloodborne pathogen training was also found to be inadequate for Environmental Services employees with occupational exposures. This resulted in a $3,500 fine. The final citation found Essentia didn’t provide training that covered the detection of hazardous chemicals, the physical and health hazards of the chemicals, and how employees should protect themselves.
For this, Essentia was fined $4,200. The violations were required to be abated by Aug. 23.
According to Essentia Health media relations specialist Tony Matt, the violations have been resolved. ADVERTISEMENT Matt provided the following statement: "Essentia Health prioritizes the safety and well-being of its staff, providing secure working conditions. When OSHA concerns are raised, we take immediate and comprehensive action to address and resolve the issues to foster a safe environment for our staff and the high-quality care we provide.
We are constantly working diligently to implement measures to ensure compliance with safety regulations and standards.".
