Hamilton hospital fined $65K after safety violation badly injured worker

St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton has been fined $65,000 after a safety violation critically injured a worker two years ago.

The incident happened in August of 2024 when a supporting device for the lid of a lab machine used for diagnostic testing slipped and fell while the worker was loading samples.

Two reports prior to the incident showed the lid gas strut needed to be replaced but repairs were delayed due to an incorrect replacement part. The part was fixed two days after the incident.

“We accept the court’s decision regarding a workplace incident in our virology lab… We sincerely apologize to the person involved, who has since returned to work,” said Carrie Fletcher, executive vice president of people, culture and strategy and chief administration officer at the hospital.

The hospital added that since the incident they have reviewed their procedures and processes “in order to strengthen equipment maintenance and workplace safety.”

“We have reinforced our processes for tagging broken equipment awaiting repair, [and] improved the vendor escalation process for repairs in addition to improvements to safety reporting and timely resolution of issues identified,” said Fletcher.

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