- 55 people have reported being exposed to toxic fumes in Christchurch Hospital as Health NZ brings in an external investigator for a “full investigation”.
- The fumes are believed to be Hexamethylene Di-Isocyanate (HDI), which was being used in painting work nearby.
- Union said health and safety systems for staff are “outdated” and show a disregard for staff safety.
The number of staff potentially exposed to toxic fumes in Christchurch Hospital has almost doubled from initial reports.
Health NZ Te Whatu Ora said in a statement earlier this week “at least 30″ people may have been affected.
South Island/Te Waipounamu deputy chief executive Martin Keogh said now at least 55 staff had come forward.
55 Christchurch Hospital staff have reported toxic fumes in the workplace. Photo / File
“Construction will not resume on site until we know the exact cause of this issue and that we can provide a safe environment for our staff and patients,” said Keogh.
In confirming the number of staff affected is higher than previously predicted, Keogh said, “health and safety is my top priority” and they have engaged an independent investigator. The investigator was not revealed.
“As part of this investigation, the exact timelines of when the issue started and how it has been managed to date will be established,” said Keogh.
The fumes are believed to be Hexamethylene Di-Isocyanate (HDI), which was being used in spray painting work nearby.
Staff members suffered a range of symptoms including swollen airways, rashes, headaches and breathing problems, their union says. One staff member was placed in ICU due to exposure.
Keogh said the issue started earlier this year, and controls for the air conditioning system were in place following internal investigations.
“However further reports of symptoms have led us to take these next steps to confirm the root cause and ensure we are providing a safe environment for everyone,” said Keogh.
Apex (the Association of Professional and Executive Employees) Union advocate Omar Hamed said this situation reinforces the idea that the current health and safety systems for workers are outdated.
“They should be put in a museum ... we know the 20 district health boards have 20 different incident and risk reporting systems and that we are still using those systems which are basically held together with Sellotape.”
Hamed said the national leaders of Te Whatu Ora have no ability to look into what’s going wrong in each district because there is no national incident reporting system.
“We were promised this year that Te Whatu Ora was prioritising the delivery of a national incident reporting system – and we’re in October and the time frame for that has been pushed out ... who knows, maybe we’ll never see it.”
He said the direction from leadership has indicated to staff that “nothing is more important than meeting whatever cost savings target that is imposed”.
“It’s destabilising the system ... and then they’re surprised when stuff like this happens.”
Hamed said staff have potentially been exposed for months due to failures within both the supervision of the construction work and the relationship between the hospital health and safety team.
He said radiography staff reported the smell back in February.
“What we really want is an easy to use, accessible ... nationally consistent reporting system for staff to report health and safety concerns.”
Katie Oliver is a Christchurch-based Multimedia Journalist and breaking news reporter.
Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you
