Inspection Detail

Inspection: 125876029 - Quidel Corp

Inspection Information - Office: San Diego District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 9:30 a.m. on April 19, 2004, Employee #1 was a machine operator working at a facility that manufactures diagnostic test kits used in clinics and hospitals. The Employee #1's job was to operate Auto Assembly machine Number 3 in the Final Assembly room, which assembles a test strip kit in a plastic cassette. On the day of the accident, Employee #1 was wiping down the metal shelf next to the dead nest where the diagnostic kits are automatically filled by the strip loader with the diagnostic film media. Another employee had just finished an adjustment on the strip loader, and there was some ink that had spilled on the shelf. Employee #1 understood that her job was to keep the machine clean throughout the day, but she knew not to attempt to clean any moving parts. As she was wiping off the shelf, the end of her latex glove got caught by the machine, pulling her finger into the pinch point between the indexer and the dead nest. The spaces on either side of the indexer where it passes the dead nest were not guarded by the light curtain when the machine was in full automatic mode. She sustained a crushing injury and lacerations. Employee #1 was treated at Scripps Clinic in La Jolla, CA, where she received stitches for the laceration of her finger and was released the same day. However, the injury eventually required partial amputation of the digit on May 3, 2004.

Keywords: AMPUTATED, FINGER, GLOVE, WORK RULES, CLEANING, CAUGHT BY, UNGUARDED