Laboratory Safety - Chapter One PDF

# Chapter One: Introduction to Laboratory Safety Laboratory safety and occupational health programs are crucial components of any school of medicine. Many potential health and safety hazards exist within the laboratory environment, and their effective management is required to provide a safe workpl...

# Chapter One: Introduction to Laboratory Safety Laboratory safety and occupational health programs are crucial components of any school of medicine. Many potential health and safety hazards exist within the laboratory environment, and their effective management is required to provide a safe workplace for faculty, staff, and students. A school of medicine uses several distinct laboratory environments in which hazardous materials are used, and there are several regulations, standards, and guidelines to which it must comply. Several organizations have developed comprehensive safety guidelines that describe good laboratory safety practices. There are several issues that may limit the quality of the safety and occupational health program in many schools of medicine. 1. **Professional staff representing the various disciplines of the laboratory are not available to manage and administer day-to-day activities.** As a result, the selection of those activities chosen to reduce risks or eliminate hazards is often associated with those individuals that are currently available. 2. **The operational control of many safety programs has been decentralized and is currently under the control of the environmental health and safety office or occupational health program.** There are no risk management and policy structures to provide oversight or direction for these activities, which have reduced the efficacy of existing occupational health and safety programs. The purpose of this chapter is to review some of the key laboratory safety rules and regulations for schools of medicine and to examine the educational and training needs of graduate and undergraduate students who are involved in many of these laboratory activities. The chapter explores a unique cohort of individuals in a highly technical occupational field, namely the postgraduate students who have completed their doctoral degrees and are working under the supervision of an attentive mentor. It will present several recommendations for improving educational programs aimed at postgraduate students in schools of medicine to better prepare them to plan safe laboratories and to work safely in these environments. The chapter also makes recommendations to the school of medicine, government, and industry about reforms needed to improve the educational, regulatory, and working environments for these students.