Cleaners working at Torbay Hospital in the U.K. have won £70,000 in damages after exposure to a hazardous chemical disinfectant at work made them ill, according to an article on the Devon Live website.
The 22 cleaning staff work for the Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, began using the chemical Actichlor seven years ago.
According to their union, the workers were not given any training on its use. Solicitors who took on the case now believe it may have repercussions on other health trusts.
A union spokesman said: "Anyone using the cleaning substance experienced runny eyes, nose sores, and wheezing coughs. To make matters worse the masks they'd been given were useless and the goggles didn't fit anyone who wore glasses."
How Retail Design Can Improve the Healthcare Patient Experience
Jefferson Health Breaks Ground on Lehigh Valley Hospital—Coopersburg
Encompass Health Plans Second Small-Format Rehabilitation Hospital
Rethinking How Healthcare Facilities Fund Construction Projects
Winners Named for the 15th Annual Healthcare Design Awards