MILWAUKEE –Twins hospitalized with lead poisoning were released and sent home to a property with chipping and peeling lead paint, records obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed.
A Milwaukee Health Department nurse, who had been told of the hazards, said the property was clear. Those actions put the children at serious risk of additional lead poisoning, according to a written warning for the nurse, wrote Mary Spicuzza of the Journal Sentinel. Manassa was later suspended for five days in April following a number of problems with her job performance.
The city’s Health Department has been reeling for months since news broke that it failed to provide follow-up services to the families of thousands of children with lead poisoning — or at least failed to document those efforts, Spicuzza wrote. The department has also faced problems with its programs involving family planning, breast cancer screenings and testing for sexually transmitted infections.
