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BryLin Hospitals has been fined by the state for "unsafe and unsanitary conditions" found during a pair of unannounced visits in January by the Office of Mental Health. Additionally, the hospital was told by the state to stop using non-clinical staff in interventions with patients.
In a letter dated Feb. 1, the state levied a $15,000 fine against the psychiatric and behavioral health facilities and directed President and CEO Eric Pleskow to submit a plan of improvement that would correct problems identified during visits by state inspectors to the hospitals' inpatient child and adolescent unit.
In visits on Jan. 8 and Jan. 28, the state found various safety and sanitary violations, including:
* An unlocked cabinet containing both patient personal care items and poisonous cleaning supplies and insect spray
* Another opened storage cupboard that contained medical items
* Potential suicide hazards, including sharp edges on a medicine cabinet in a private bathroom and long electrical cords that were accessible to patients