As is usual in such situations, the OSC also notified Congress and the White House and thanked the whistleblower. Image: Margoe Edwards/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe Office of Special Counsel has credited a VA whistleblower with improving safety for employees in laundry services operations at a medical center based on disclosures of contaminated needles being found in laundry bins.
The whistleblower, a machine operator at the Richmond, Va., VAMC laundry service, “disclosed to OSC that employees found used syringes containing blood or other substances in soiled textiles received from patient care units. A VA investigative report substantiated allegation, finding that risks to employees were not adequately managed,” an OSC announcement said.
“The report recommended significant corrective actions, including tracking and reporting linens sent with medical waste; training clinical staff on proper disposal of syringes and debris; developing an SOP for reporting items found in soiled linens; providing training and protective gloves for laundry service employees; and establishing monthly infection control inspections in the laundry service,” it said.
As is usual in such situations, the OSC also notified Congress and the White House and thanked the whistleblower.
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