LABORATORY SAFETY

 Common sense
 Good housekeeping (promotes safety)
 Personal behavior
 Stay focused
 Good laboratory practice- there should be a continual practice

Common cause of accidents

 Inexperience
 Ignoring known risks
 Haste
 Carelessness
 Fatigue
 Mental preoccupation

Physical hazards

 Noise
 Projectiles
 Heating devices
 Moving machinery
 Slippery
Electrical safety

 Lockout or tag out malfunctioning electrical or mechanical equipment until serviced

 Report any small shocks, unplug and tag equipment until serviced.

Fire safety

 Personnel should know the location and type of portable fire extinguisher near the work are and
know how to use the fire extinguisher before a fire occurs.

Chemical hazards

 Reactive
 Toxins
 Flammables
 Corrosives
Chemical safety

 Hazard Communication Standard in 1983 of OSHA

1. Classify
2. Labels –provided by the manufacturer
 MSDS- contain information regarding the properties and effects of each chemical (toxic,
flammable, caustic and combination of these effects).
1. There are 16 sections in SDS
2. There should be a training

 NFPA – Set the safety diamond

Reactivity
Biological hazards

 Microbes
 Plants
 Genetically modified
 Animals

 Airborne pathogens
 Blood-borne pathogens
-Category I – subject to the highest potential of exposure (medtech)
-Category II – mid potential of exposure (janitors, wardmen)
-Category III – very limited to zero exposure (cashier, pharmacist)
EXPOSURE OF WORKERS

Biological safety

 Collect, transport, handle and process using strict precautions

 Wearing PPE
 Specimen should remain capped during centrifugation
 Spills must be cleaned up immediately
1. Wear PPE
2. Use mechanical devices to pick sharps such as forceps.
3. Absorb the liquid using gauze or tissue paper
4. Decontaminate using 10% bleach
5. Proper waste disposal
6. Clean the surface area
7. Dispose
 OSHA requires written “Exposure Control Plan”
 Biological safety cabinets should be installed in the strategic places.

Safety awareness
OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) - 1983 expanded in 1987

CDC (Center for Disease Control) - universal Precaution (1987) “treats all specimen as potentially
infectious” [HIV was viral]

US Congress – CLIA ’88 (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act)

DOH- National Center for Health Facilities and Development

Precautions

 Precautionary barriers – PPE

 Safety equipment- eyewash station and safety shower
Safety practices

 Spills (decontamination)
 Heat sterilization (250⁰C for 15 minutes)- through the use of autoclave (not for plastic)
 Ethylene oxide
 2% glutaraldehyde
 10% hydrogen peroxide
 5.25% hypochlorite
 10% common household bleach – quality is only 2 days
 Immunizations – Hepa B vaccine
 Hand washing- before and after donning the gloves
 Employee training (hazards) Corrosive
 Labels and signs Toxic Substance
materials
 Waste disposal Biohazard
Electrical
hazard

Explosive
Caution Materials

Flammable

4 Basic Techniques:

 Flushing down the drain- chemical biological waste (if it’s a strong acid it’s should be neutralize
first and vice versa) + plenty of water
 Incineration – not advisable because of the clean act
 Landfill burial – most common (the landfill should be 6ft deep and 3ft wide and 150 meters
away from water source such as drainage) + should be fenced + best for biological hazards
 Recycling

Color coding scheme Waste categories

Black Non-infectious dry waste
Green Non-infectious wet waste
Yellow Infectious pathological waste
Yellow with black band Chemical and heavy metal wastes
Orange Radioactive waste
Red Sharps and pressured container