Number of Christchurch Hospital staff potentially exposed to toxic fumes rises to 84

• The number of Christchurch Hospital staff who may have inhaled toxic fumes at a construction site has risen to 84.
• It is believed that an industrial chemical left over from painting in a nearby hospital building came through the air conditioning system.
• Health NZ says some construction work has resumed on the hospital campus.
• Projects that may generate hazardous fumes will not be restarted until the cause of the problem is determined.

Number of Christchurch Hospital staff who may have inhalation of toxic fumes from construction it jumped to 84.

An industrial chemical left over from painting at a nearby hospital building was believed to have leaked through the air conditioning system earlier this year. Radiology team workers suffered from headaches, breathing problems and rashes. One had to be admitted to intensive care.

Among the victims were pregnant women.

Health NZ Te Waipounamu deputy chief executive Martin Keogh said 84 staff had so far raised concerns they may have been exposed to the fumes. It was compared to 55 employees last month.

The investigation into the cause of the problem and how it was dealt with is ongoing, Keogh said.

“We are establishing an ongoing health monitoring program for affected staff and a specialist doctor we have engaged will provide advice and clinical assessments to those staff who choose to take up this offer.

“It is critical to me that we ensure that all affected employees have the necessary resources and support needed to assess their exposure risk and provide the treatment needed for their recovery,” he said.

The vapors were suspected to be hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI).

New Zealand’s Ministry of Health has engaged an external independent investigator to conduct a full investigation.

Keogh said some construction work had resumed on the Christchurch Hospital campus after all activity had been suspended.

“We are working through the review process to get low-risk smoke projects up and running again, and two projects have resumed work – the Christchurch Women’s Hospital switchboard replacement and the outpatient care center project.

“Any projects that may generate hazardous fumes will not resume until I am confident that the root cause of the problem has been identified and mitigation measures have been taken to ensure a safe work environment for our employees and patients, which we are aware of.” charged with care,” he said. said.

The APEX union, which represents New Zealand’s allied science and technology workers, believes the smoke leak began in February.

Advocate Omar Hamed told RNZ The hospital management’s response in the first half of this year was inadequate.

“We understand that the reports that our members entered into the risk management incident reporting system essentially received no response,” Hamed said.

RNZ obtained a memo sent to staff last month by Keogh which said the fumes may have resulted from fire retardant paints being sprayed onto the steel structure of Tower 3.

“A number of radiology staff developed symptoms that included a range of respiratory and/or skin symptoms/rashes ranging in severity from very minor to very severe, including one staff member who was admitted to the intensive care unit,” the memo states. .

It said Te Watu Ora was working diligently to identify staff or patients who may have been exposed.

It talked about HDI, what the substance actually is and what the health risks are. The note said it was used as a thickener and hardener for two-part paints. This can cause respiratory irritation, dizziness, irritation and headaches. Long-term immunological reactions may occur, which can cause adult asthma, skin and gastrointestinal reactions.

It also states that there is no risk for pregnant employees that HDI will be teratogenic (cause changes in unborn children) or carcinogenic (capable of causing cancer).

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero’s daily newsletter. curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.