Hospital sued by a registered nurse for alleged workers’ comp retaliation

• A lawsuit filed by a registered nurse in Oregon alleges management at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center pushed her from her job after she was repeatedly injured while working.
• The lawsuit accuses the Springfield-based hospital of retaliating against her for filing a workers’ comp claim and discriminating against her because of her age.
• The hospital, owned by Vancouver, Wash.-based PeaceHealth, treated the woman “harshly” and kept her out of lighter duties after undergoing three surgeries for work-related injuries between 2019 and 2022, the lawsuit states.
• The hospital system announced its plans in August, citing decreased use of the University District hospital and more capacity.
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Slips, trips, falls leading cause of workers’ comp at work

• Between 12% and 15% of workers’ compensation costs are due to slips, trips and falls, with an average cost of $40,000, according to statistics from various agencies, such as OSHA, BLS, CDC, and NIOSH.
• More than one in five (22%) of falls result in over 31 days of missed work. Meanwhile, 20% of falls are fatal, among which 15% to 65% are same-level falls, depending on the business sector.
• Same-level falls, slips, and trips cost businesses around $17 billion a year.
• In many cases, workers and employees who suffer slips, trips and falls are entitled to claim compensation from employers, through settlements or awards from the court.
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West Virginia court clarifies workers’ comp rule

• The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia clarified that the increased risk test may be used to determine whether injuries sustained by employees engaged in a neutral risk activity are compensable under workers’ comp.
• The ruling stems from a case where an employee who was making a delivery for his employer filed a claim for workers’ comp benefits after suffering a knee injury while walking down three steps.
• The employee did not slip, trip, or fall and the stairs were not defective. An administrative law judge denied the claim, finding that the injury was not sustained during and as a result of employment.
• In its review of the case on appeal, the state’s supreme court noted that there are different types of injury-causing risks and that the employee’s injury was caused by a neutral risk, which is one that is neither distinctly employment nor distinctly personal in character.
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Explosion injures employee at Arkansas plant

• One person was severely burned and two people were injured after an explosion at Hoffinger Industries in West Helena, Arkansas.
• The explosion started at the manufacturer of Doughboy above-ground swimming pools when an employee was filling up a propane tank.
• The employee was then airlifted to the hospital in critical condition.
• Firefighters quickly contained the propane fire and paramedics treated the victims while the investigation began into what caused the explosion, which closed the I-40 bridge into Memphis.
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