A woman has sued the Bermuda Hospitals Board over allegations that she was injured in a workplace prank.

While the Supreme Court recently struck out claims that the board (BHB) did not properly train staff not to play potentially dangerous jokes, other related claims are still before the court.

According to court documents, nurse’s aide Roshea Hill-Cross launched legal actions against the BHB alleging that it was vicariously responsible for injuries suffered when a co-worker, Pedmini Lall, moved a chair that she was about to sit down in.

The BHB, however, sought for the personal injury claim to be struck down, arguing that it was frivolous, made no reasonable cause of action and amounted to an abuse of the court system.

Ms Lall is no longer working on the Island and has not been able to respond to the allegations.

It was not stated in the documents if Ms Hill-Cross is still an employee of the BHB.

Ms Hill-Cross was injured on April 29, 2009 while she was stationed on Cooper Ward. She alleges that she was studying in preparation for a weekly quiz when she stood up to get another manual. As she went to sit down again, she claimed that Ms Lall moved the chair out from under her, causing her to fall to the ground.

While Ms Hill-Cross claims the action was a practical joke, the BHB responded that Ms Lall did not know she was returning to the seat.

After the fall, the complainant experienced pain and discomfort around the base of her spine and on May 6 that year attended Emergency Health Services, which signed her off work for one week. She subsequently attended the fracture clinic on May 21 and was recommended to engage in light duties only until May 26.

She claims that her injuries were further exacerbated on May 30 when she attempted to move an obese elderly patient. In her pleadings, she said the patient, who had been in excruciating pain that morning, had panicked while she was cleaning his sheets and gripped her, pushing his weight on her.

Ms Hill-Cross alleges that the BHB is vicariously responsible for both incidents, arguing that the board failed to properly train staff not to play potentially dangerous pranks and had not properly trained her to move patients. She also argued that the BHB put her in a position to exacerbate her injuries.

The board, however, responded that Ms Hill-Cross had been warned not to attempt to move or lift a patient without the assistance of another staff member, arguing that she had voluntarily assumed the risk of injury.

They also stated that incoming nurses, including Ms Lall, attended a training course that warned them against “skylarking” or other irresponsible behaviour.

In a written decision, Puisne Judge Stephen Hellman struck out the claim that the BHB was vicariously responsible for Ms Lall’s alleged misconduct saying: “The stupid and dangerous horseplay alleged was so obviously inappropriate that the defendant was not required to address it in training.

“Nonetheless, the defendant has adduced uncontradicted evidence that as part of her training Ms Lall was warned not to engage in horseplay.”

However, he refused to strike out claims based on the exacerbating incident, saying more concrete findings need to be made about what took place.

“The defendant has in my judgment failed to show that there is no realistic possibility of the plaintiff establishing a cause of action consistently with the exacerbation point and the possible facts of the matter when they are known,” Mr Justice Hellman wrote.

“The strike out application with respect to that point is therefore dismissed, although it is only fair to indicate that at present the plaintiff’s case does not appear to me to be a strong one. That, of course, may change at trial.”