G2 News-At-A-Glance: Lab Tech Alleges HIV Testing Errors

Lili Hutchinson, 51, a 23-year employee at Brooklyn’s New York King County Hospital, alleges in a whistleblower lawsuit that lab technicians misdiagnosed patients with HIV and hepatitis C and made many other routine mistakes at her hospital lab, according to a report in the New York Daily News Nov. 22. Hutchinson says she reported the problems and misdiagnoses to “higher-ups” at the hospital going back to 2002, but instead of fixing the problems, they retaliated against her. Hutchinson alleges that she was disrespected by supervisors, denied training, and assaulted. She says that in 2005 she was transferred to the hematology lab as part of the retaliation, and two years later she was denied a promotion even though the lab faced a shortage of technologists. According to the newspaper story, in 2008 the city’s Health and Hospital Corporation inspector general found her allegations have merit, and in 2011, the state’s Department of Health confirmed alleged safety violations. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for hostile work environment, lost wages, and emotional suffering.