AFT Healthcare-Maryland president Debra Perry has called for an immediate investigation of unsafe working conditions at the Thomas B. Finan Center in Cumberland, Maryland, where a staff member was brutally attacked and injured October 14th. The staff member was stabbed in the back of the head with a seven-inch galvanized spike while trying to restrain a combative patient.
According to Perry, the attack underscores the need for a comprehensive violence prevention program, as recommended by the Ocupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Perry called for a thorough investigation into the attack and demanded that the hospital administration immediately contact consultation services from the Maryland OSHA to develop a comprehensive workplace violence prevention program.
AFT Healthcare-Maryland has scheduled an October 24th meeting with officials from the Finan Center. Darryl Alexander, Director of the AFT Health and Safety Division, will attend that meeting.