All employees should be thoroughly familiar with the emergency response procedures established for your facility. In addition to training and emergency information being posted, have you considered developing a ‘bail out binder’ to take with you in the event of an evacuation?
OSHA requires employers to provide their employees with working conditions that are free of known dangers. This includes providing work environments that are free of ergonomic hazards.
It is important to keep your Emergency Action Plan or Contingency Plan up to date. Don’t wait for the plan to fail in an emergency situation before you update it.
Did you know that approximately 33 percent of people exposed to laboratory animals as part of their job develop symptoms of allergies? And, about 10 percent of exposed individuals have symptoms of animal-induced asthma?
If you are conducting internal laboratory audits, how do you handle the findings? Once internal lab audits are implemented, the appropriate approach to handling the findings needs to established.
Every facility licensed to use radioactive materials is required to implement an area survey procedure to ensure that contamination is detected and decontaminated as necessary. Do you know if your authorized users are following the steps outlined in your facility’s approved procedure?
Developing and implementing policies for an environmental, health, and safety program needs to be a collaborative effort. There are various driving factors when considering what types of policies to implement including regulations, best practice implementation, particularly hazardous operations or equipment, etc.
Even if it is not required by a specific regulation, laboratories working with biological materials should have an active biosafety manual in place. Has your facility developed and implemented a biosafety manual, and has it been updated recently?
There are many reasons to conduct internal lab safety audits, including preparing for regulatory inspections, promoting safety, and discovering what program elements could use some attention. Has your safety committee considered implementing internal lab safety audits?
Generators of hazardous waste are responsible for waste generated at their site from cradle to grave, meaning that the generator is responsible for waste until it is ultimately disposed of. A manifest using EPA form 8700-22, and 8700-22A if necessary, is required every time a hazardous waste generator offers waste for transportation for off-site treatment, storage, or disposal.
Individuals entering laboratory space should be informed of the hazards associated with the particular laboratories. Lab workers are required to attend safety training, but does your facility extend the training requirement to ancillary staff?
All work-related incidents, accidents, and near misses need to be reported according to your institutional policy, which typically involves completing an incident report within 24 hours of the occurrence. The critical next step is a review process to evaluate the event.
