The main cause of the deadly disease mesothelioma, is exposure to asbestos. When workers are completing a remodel or renovation project in buildings or homes built before 1980, they may be exposed to the carcinogenic material. A recent workplace investigation at a Brooklyn medical center has revealed the need to better train workers to prevent asbestos exposure.

Many buildings and houses constructed before 1980 have asbestos-containing ceiling tiles, floor tiles, insulation, or plumbing. This material in a building or house does not pose a problem as long as the asbestos is not disturbed. Renovations can distrub the asbestos fibers, which causes the workers to inhale the material. When the fibers are inhaled or ingested, the asbestos fibers become lodged in the lining of the heart, lungs, and abdomen, causing inflammation. This inflammation eventually causes mesothelioma, a deadly lung cancer, and other health problems. In addition, exposure to asbestos can also cause asbestosis, a chronic scarring of the lung that causes shortness of breath and other breathing problems.

Inspectors with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York with 14 violations of workplace safety and approximately $48,000 in fines.

OSHA's New York area Director for Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, Kay Gee, said that federal work safety standards require job training for those who could be in contact with asbestos or asbestos-containing material. This training should include information about the hazards of asbestos and how to use the appropriate safety precautions in order to protect their health.

According to a U.S. Department of Labor news release, the medical center failed to provide workers with adequate training for environmental staff and employees in the engineering department who perform demolition and renovation. Additionally, the hospital failed to properly label asbestos-containing insulation and floor tile. The hospital also allowed disposal of asbestos in the dumpster, which is not appropriate disposal protocol for working with the deadly material. Officials at the hospital failed to train trade workers about the dangers of asbestos or inform outside contractors of the presence of potentially asbestos-containing materials.

The OSHA inspectors issued 10 serious violations; a serious violation is defined as one where there is a substantial possibility that serious physical harm or death could result from a hazard that an employer knew about or should have known about.

The hospital has 15 business days to comply or contest the findings.

Approximately 3,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year. Many are workers who were exposed to asbestos in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Unfortunately, the symptoms of the disease can take up to thirty years to manifest, thus when patients are diagnosed with the disease, it is often too late for effective treatment.