Hospital trust fined after staff and contractors exposed to asbestos
Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust has been fined £16,000 and ordered to pay more than £18,000 in costs after refurbishment work carried out in an accommodation block at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital exposed staff and contractors to asbestos.
In June 2012, Trust employees were removing fixtures and fittings from the empty flat when they disturbed asbestos containing materials.
A court heard that the Trust then failed to take adequate measures to deal with the initial release of asbestos, exposing other contractors who later worked in the flat.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the Trust did not properly record asbestos containing materials on their estate.
Despite having arrangements in place to manage asbestos, the overall management plan for dealing with asbestos was not recorded in a “clear and concise manner” or effectively communicated to its staff and contractors working on site, the investigation found.
HSE inspector David Kivlin said: “The Trust should have controlled this potentially lethal risk by identifying the type, location and condition of any asbestos-containing-materials within the accommodation block at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, by implementing suitable precautions to prevent its disturbance.
“Although there is no indication that members of the public at the hospital were exposed as a result of the failings, asbestos related diseases are currently untreatable and claim the lives of an estimated 5,000 people per year in the UK.
“This prosecution should act as a reminder, not just to hospitals but to anyone in control of the repair and maintenance of non-domestic premises, of the need to ensure that correct control measures are put in place to ensure that exposure to asbestos is prevented, so far as is reasonably practicable.”
