MONROE - Federal U.S. Department of Labor investigators cited Monroe Clinic for violating workplace health standards in December after they found the facility did not provide sufficient protection from asbestos exposure, a determination the Monroe facility says it will challenge.
Investigators from the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that Monroe Clinic made 12 different health violations after an inspection in June.
According to a news release from the Department of Labor, the clinic failed to provide basic protective standards such as personal protective equipment and decontamination sites, nor did it provide medical surveillance of employees or inform workers of the presence of asbestos in the facility. Monroe Clinic faces $261,890 in proposed penalties.
Prolonged exposure to airborne asbestos, which saw widespread use as insulation throughout the 20th Century, can cause serious illnesses such as lung cancer.
Patricia Lawson, the clinic's director of marketing, said Monroe Clinic will contest the citations.
The violations occurred during a renovation of the clinic in 2016, Lawson said. During the renovation, portions of the clinic's campus that had been built in the 1930s and 1950s were demolished, disturbing asbestos within the buildings.
Patients within the affected wings were relocated during the renovation process and were therefore not exposed to airborne asbestos, Lawson said.
"It is important to note that no patient care or public areas were implicated in this investigation," said chief medical officer Mark Thompson in a statement Thursday. "The citations largely center around maintenance activities performed in non-public areas."
Lawson said Monroe Clinic had hired independent consultants to assess the presence of possible asbestos in the affected areas, which the consultants removed without incident.
However, Lawson said, consultants also found pockets of asbestos they were not aware of during the process.
Lawson said the Clinic's procedures met the health industry's protection standards but not the construction industry's standards.
"We took air samples during the process and they didn't meet OSHA's threshold for exposure," Lawson said.
Lawson said OSHA did not take air samples during its investigation, and their citations largely had to do with a lack of appropriate employee training and improper demarcation of the affected area. The Monroe Clinic revamped its employee training immediately after the inspection, Lawson said.
Lawson added that the asbestos was successfully purged from the affected areas.
"While this experience has provided us with the opportunity to become more knowledgeable about OSHA's standards and enhance our diligence in signage and training, we believe the fines imposed are not commensurate with the shortcomings outlined in the OSHA findings," Thompson said in the statement.
"We are hopeful that we can work with the OSHA team to come to an equitable resolution."
Investigators from the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that Monroe Clinic made 12 different health violations after an inspection in June.
According to a news release from the Department of Labor, the clinic failed to provide basic protective standards such as personal protective equipment and decontamination sites, nor did it provide medical surveillance of employees or inform workers of the presence of asbestos in the facility. Monroe Clinic faces $261,890 in proposed penalties.
Prolonged exposure to airborne asbestos, which saw widespread use as insulation throughout the 20th Century, can cause serious illnesses such as lung cancer.
Patricia Lawson, the clinic's director of marketing, said Monroe Clinic will contest the citations.
The violations occurred during a renovation of the clinic in 2016, Lawson said. During the renovation, portions of the clinic's campus that had been built in the 1930s and 1950s were demolished, disturbing asbestos within the buildings.
Patients within the affected wings were relocated during the renovation process and were therefore not exposed to airborne asbestos, Lawson said.
"It is important to note that no patient care or public areas were implicated in this investigation," said chief medical officer Mark Thompson in a statement Thursday. "The citations largely center around maintenance activities performed in non-public areas."
Lawson said Monroe Clinic had hired independent consultants to assess the presence of possible asbestos in the affected areas, which the consultants removed without incident.
However, Lawson said, consultants also found pockets of asbestos they were not aware of during the process.
Lawson said the Clinic's procedures met the health industry's protection standards but not the construction industry's standards.
"We took air samples during the process and they didn't meet OSHA's threshold for exposure," Lawson said.
Lawson said OSHA did not take air samples during its investigation, and their citations largely had to do with a lack of appropriate employee training and improper demarcation of the affected area. The Monroe Clinic revamped its employee training immediately after the inspection, Lawson said.
Lawson added that the asbestos was successfully purged from the affected areas.
"While this experience has provided us with the opportunity to become more knowledgeable about OSHA's standards and enhance our diligence in signage and training, we believe the fines imposed are not commensurate with the shortcomings outlined in the OSHA findings," Thompson said in the statement.
"We are hopeful that we can work with the OSHA team to come to an equitable resolution."