Humber River Health is suing the consortium contracted to build and maintain its Toronto hospital for $100 million, alleging that negligent design and construction is creating health and safety problems for patients and staff.
The lawsuit, filed in early April, alleges that a “sizable portion” of the hospital’s floors are not level or flat and that some of the flooring itself is deteriorating.
“Floor levelness is a critical operational and safety issue,” reads Humber River Health’s claim, filed in Ontario Superior Court.
“Non-level floors make it difficult for staff to move equipment, supplies, food, and patients on wheeled transportation devices. Often, wheeled carts have to be placed behind rubber stoppers to prevent the carts from sliding out of position.”
Same thing happened to Thunder Bay’s hospital. Built on the Fort William flood plain, on what was marsh at the time, it didn’t take long for the slabs to start shifting. There were safety cones all over the place warning people to watch their step.