Several safety rule breaches, including not wearing proper protective gear while conducting experiments, led to a researcher working at an Academia Sinica laboratory handling the COVID-19 virus to become infected with the disease, an investigative report showed.
The researcher is a woman in her 20s who worked until early this month in a lab at Academia Sinica’s Genomics Research Center. She began to show symptoms of COVID-19 late last month, and a test she took on Dec. 9 came back positive.
Based on genome sequencing results, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) concluded that the laboratory in Taipei’s Nangang District (南港) where she worked was the origin of the infection, which raised questions about whether current safety protocols were adequate in preventing potential transmission and whether the laboratory had breached any of the protocols in place.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
In the wake of the incident, Academia Sinica was ordered to conduct an internal investigation, and a 28-page report on its findings was sent to the CECC on Sunday.
According to a summary of the report released by the CECC on Monday, Academia Sinica identified three reasons that the researcher had been exposed to the virus, based on interviews with people who worked there, laboratory records and surveillance footage of the lab.
Researchers are only allowed to handle COVID-19 infected mice in biosafety cabinets, but this rule was breached, resulting in several areas in the lab becoming contaminated, the summary said.
The researcher infected with COVID-19 also took off her mask before removing the rest of her protective gear, which was not the correct order of removal.
Moreover, the researcher and her colleagues failed to wear proper protective gear — including N95 masks, two sets of gloves, and safety goggles — while conducting experiments, the summary said.
As a result, the researcher was directly exposed on several occasions to the virus while wearing inadequate protective gear, which could have resulted in her becoming infected with the disease, although she could also have been infected because she had removed her gear in the wrong order, it said.
Academia Sinica said that it would review its supervisory system for its laboratories that handle sensitive materials, and that it would boost training for research personnel.
The CECC plans to meet with an independent investigation committee looking into the incident on Thursday and release its findings, including what punishments are to be handed out, in two weeks, it said.
The laboratory has been temporarily barred from using infectious biological materials and might only resume their use after obtaining approval from the Centers of Disease Control, the CECC said.
None of the infected researcher’s contacts have tested positive for COVID-19, the CECC said.
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
A drunk woman was sexually assaulted inside a crowded concourse of Taipei Railway Station on Thursday last week before a foreign tourist notified police, leading to calls for better education on bystander intervention and review of security infrastructure. The man, surnamed Chiu (邱), was taken into custody on charges of sexual assault, taking advantage of the woman’s condition and public indecency. Police discovered that Chiu was a fugitive with prior convictions for vehicle theft. He has been taken into custody and is to complete his unserved six-month sentence, police said. On Thursday last week, Chiu was seen wearing a white
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
EVA Airways, one of the leading international carriers in Taiwan, yesterday said that it was investigating reports that a cabin crew manager had ignored the condition of a sick flight attendant, who died on Saturday. The airline made the statement in response to a post circulating on social media that said that the flight attendant on an outbound flight was feeling sick and notified the cabin crew manager. Although the flight attendant grew increasingly ill on the return flight, the manager did not contact Medlink — a system that connects the aircraft to doctors on the ground for treatment advice during medical
RSS