FRESNO, Calif. (KMPH) -
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has fined Saint Agnes Medical Center $50,000 for leaving a towel inside a patient who had abdominal surgery two years ago.
CDPH officials say the Fresno hospital failed to ensure the health and safety of a patient when it did not follow surgical policies and procedures. They say the hospital did not account for one operating towel.
The patient had to undergo a second surgery to remove the towel.
Officials say this is the hospital's fourth administrative penalty since the department started regulating health facilities in 2007.
According to a CDPH report, the hospital will now use towels that are x-ray detectable when operating on a patient.
Saint Agnes Medical Center issued the following statement:
"Delivering safe patient care is our No. 1 priority at Saint Agnes Medical Center and a commitment shared by every one of our caregivers and staff. Our goal is always to provide the safest and highest quality of care possible. In this particular case, we did not meet that goal. However, once we recognized our mistake, we took immediate corrective actions. This included self-reporting the issue to the state and conducting a thorough analysis of our process and policies to ensure that we have the necessary safeguards in place. Once the state conducted its review, it acknowledged that appropriate action had been taken and patients were not at risk."
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