Inspection Detail

Inspection: 315829069 - Ca Dept. Of State Hospitals Napa State Hospital

Inspection Information - Office: American Canyon District Office

Investigation Summary

On August 15, 2012 Employee #1, a psychiatric technician, was observing a patient in a mental health hospital. He was sitting in a chair with his back against a hallway wall. Another patient walked past him and then turned, and without provocation, punched him on his right upper jaw, which lacerated his lip. The patient then maneuvered behind him and pulled on his lanyard. Employee #1 struggled with the patient and pulled his lanyard in the opposite direction. The lanyard separated from his neck and activated the personal alarm system. Other employees arrived to the location and saw him and patient fall on the ground. Employee #1 was taken to the emergency room of a medical center, where he was treated and then released later that night. Around the time of this assault and another, the employer was taking steps to evaluate alternatives to the alarm manufacturer's single-breakaway lanyard. Soon after, to control the strangulation hazard, the employer replaced the single-breakaway lanyards with a carabiner connector and, at the choice of the employee, an employer-manufactured triple breakaway lanyard.

Keywords: STRUCK BY, FACE