Kaiser Permanente facility fined for MRI accident

Kaiser Permanente in Redwood City, CA, is paying an $18,000 fine after an accident involving an MRI machine injured a nurse, according to a report by the Daily Post. 

The MRI machine pulled a metal bed and a nurse several feet, leaving the nurse with injuries to her pelvis, right leg, and abdomen. She spent several days in the hospital recovering, the article stated.

The accident took place on February 23. The article reported that the nurse was in the preparation area with a patient and another nurse. After preparing the patient for imaging, the nurse began to move the bed toward the door to the MRI room. The door was open, however, and the MRI machine flung the bed and nurse toward the scanner, pinning the nurse between the bed and the machine.

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) fined the facility for not having a plan to make sure the door between the prep area and MRI room stayed closed.

The Post's article stated that Kaiser Permanente submitted response documents to Cal/OSHA saying that within a few hours of the accident, hospital leaders met to discuss preventative measures for future instances.