An Introduction for Engineering, Science and Medicine staff to safe laboratory practice

1. An Introduction for Engineering, Science and Medicine staff to safe laboratory practice Laboratory Safety Awareness Presented by Lance Islip

3. Course Outcomes • At the end of this course you will be able to: • Participate in safe laboratory conduct • Access safety literature including Australian Standards • Identify , assess and control risks for plant, equipment and chemicals • Develop good housekeeping practices • Select and use appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)

4. OHS in your area What do you know about the OHS systems for: • Access to your lab facilities (or other restricted zones) • Emergencies (evacuation, spills, contamination, fire) • Chemicals • Waste • Protective clothing and equipment • Managing hazards and risks • Plant and Equipment • Training • Purchasing of laboratory supplies or new equipment • What documentation exists for these (Government, UNSW, School, lab, etc that you know of) OHS729 Laboratory Review form

5. OHS in your area What OHS documents should be in a laboratory or workshop: • Register of RA’s and SWP’s • Emergency procedures • Chemicals register • MSDS’s • Plant and Equipment register • Maintenance schedule • Equipment log books for use and maintenance • Training records • Equipment manuals

6. Safe Conduct • Always wear appropriate clothing as well as PPE • Never adopt a casual attitude • Do not store or consume food or drink • Keep the laboratory locked • Maintain good housekeeping practices, including cleaning up spills and disposing of wastes correctly • Look after your visitors

7. Personal Protective Equipment • Selection, use and storage for: • Protective footwear • Protective clothing • Eye protection • Gloves • Respiratory protection • Hearing protection • Supporting UNSW Documentation: • OHS659 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Guideline

8. Personal Protective Equipment • The least effective control measure – the hazard still exists. • Protection in the laboratory for: • Eyes • Limb and body • Hearing • Respiratory • PPCE needs to be: • Suitable, properly maintained, meet standards • Provided with training

9. Personal Protective Equipment • Workers who rely on PPE must understand the functioning, proper use, and limitations of the PPE used. • Protects only the wearer, and does not protect anyone else. • Must be assessed on a case by case basis. • Wearing PPCE outside the lab? • Hazard present? • Public exposed – not protected • Contamination issues • Fear in others

10. Protective Footwear How could this happen in a lab/workshop?

11. Protective Footwear - Selection Step 1: Identify workplace hazards, eg chemicals, slippery floors, falling objects, flying objects, sharp materials, oily surfaces, hot surfaces. Step 2: Use Australian Standard 2210 Part 1 to select the footwear type select the preferred upper and sole material and sole design Step 3: Factors to look at include: chemical resistance slip resistance penetration resistance electrical conductivity properties anti-static properties heat resistance

12. Protective Footwear - Types

13. Protective Clothing • Lab coats are appropriate for minor chemical splashes and spills • Plastic or rubber aprons are best for corrosive or irritating liquids. • When cleaning and decontamination of reusable clothing is difficult, disposable outer garments may be useful • Not to be stored on workbenches, backs of chairs etc

14. Personal Protective Equipment

15. Eye Protection • Safety Glasses • lenses are impact resistant and frames are far stronger • should have side shields and should be worn whenever there is the possibility of objects striking the eye. • not appropriate for dusts, powders or liquids • Chemical Splash Goggles • worn when there is potential for splash from a hazardous material • chemical splash goggles should have indirect ventilation • some may be worn over prescription glasses 15

16. Eye Protection • Face Shields • Use when working with cryogens or large volumes of hazardous materials, for protection from splash to face or flying particles • Face shields can be used in conjunction with safety glasses or goggles • Contact Lenses • Contact lenses may be worn in the laboratory • They do not offer any protection from chemical contact • If contaminated with a hazardous chemical, rinse the eyes using an eyewash and remove the lens immediately • Storage • Safety glasses, goggles and Shields should be stored in a drawer/cupboard (i.e. not on bench) to avoid contamination

17. Eye Protection Asian nose bridge Vs Caucasian bridge

18. Eye Protection

19. Gloves

20. Gloves • Gloves should be worn if there is a physical, chemical or temperature hazard • For Chemical Hazards consider the following: • degradation rating • breakthrough time • permeation rate • Compatibility information • For Physical and Temp hazards: • Leather • Fabric • Insulation • Loop pile

21. Gloves • Dexterity – Grip – Size – Length • Consider double gloving, replace outer glove if splashed • Wear tight-fitting glove over loose glove to increase dexterity • Ribbing, granular finish, felt • Too tight causes fatigue • Inspection – Use – Care – Storage • Inspect before each use, test for pinholes • Wash before removing • Change disposables as soon as contamination occurs • Do not touch other surfaces whilst wearing • Do not store open glove containers near chemicals • Ensure gloves are not stored on top of chemical containers

22. Respiratory Protection • Initial Hazard Assessment • This may involve measuring exposure levels. • Respirator Selection • half-face or full-face air purifying respirator, • powered air purifying respirator, supplied air respirator or SCBA • appropriate type of filter or chemical cartridge is selected • Training and Fit-Testing • Qualitative fit-testing using irritant smoke • Positive and negative pressure checks

23. Respiratory Protection • Class P1 • Filters particles from inhaled air. • Must have a correct fit/seal on face. • Beard/stubble make these ineffective. • Surgical masks • Filters particles from exhaled air • Fluid resistant to infectious material splash or spatter • Protects others from your microbes • No protection from inhaled dusts unless also rated to P1.

24. Respiratory Protection

25. Hearing Protection • Workers exposed to loud or excessive noise must be provided with hearing protection • Should be: • compatible with the job • hygienic • comfortable • able to provide audibility of warning noises • OHS708 Noise Management Procedure

26. Risk Assessment When do you need to do a risk assessment? Who needs to write and approve the risk assessment? Things to remember when writing a risk assessment: • Specify type of PPE • Refer to MSDS and Manufacturers Manuals • Consider hazard types • Emergency Procedures • Are all steps of the Activity addressed? • Additional Controls • Review timeframes • Review effectiveness of controls OHS329 Risk Assessment and Control Procedure OHS017 Risk Assessment and Control Form OHS643 Hierarchy of Chemical Risk Controls

27. Safe Work Procedures • The SWP is a control measure identified in the risk assessment and includes: • Step by step instructions for undertaking the task safely • Specific precautions required • PPCE to be provided and worn • Emergency shutdown • Waste disposal • Authorisation, training and review • OHS027 Safe Work Procedure Guideline • OHS026 Safe Work Procedure Form • OHS701 Personal Protective Equipment signs Display them near the equipment. Some people even have a photo of the custodian on it.

28. Safe Work Procedures

29. Plant Safety • Plant safety • Electrical safety • Safe Working Procedures • Gas Cylinders • Fume Cupboards

30. Plant Safety • Plant includes all machinery and equipment, both stationary and mobile, tools and implements used in the laboratory eg: • Computers, manual handling equipment, microscopes, freezers, gas cylinders, ladders, drying ovens, autoclaves • Injuries that result from unsafe plant range from minor burns and cuts to traumatic injuries such as broken bones, amputations and death eg: • hit by moving plant, • caught or crushed in plant, • Cuts and bruises from hand tools, • Strain and overuse injuries from poor posture and operating positions

31. Plant Safety Activity

32. Plant Safety

33. Plant Guidelines • Only use plant for which you have been trained • Always use safety devices provided • Wear appropriate clothing • Wear the PPE provided • Read the Safe Working Procedure provided • Lock out/tag out procedure • Consider safety as a priority in plant design • Purchase plant with safety devices installed • Budget for training of staff and students • Assess competency of staff • Ensure that maintenance can be done safely

34. Control Measures for Plant • Guarding • Operational controls • Emergency stops and warning devices • Mandatory design standards • Operator competencies • Registration requirements • Maintenance and repair • Dismantling, storage and disposal • OHS327 Plant and Equipment Procedure • OHS728 Plant design Guideline • AS 2243.6 – Safety in Laboratories Plant and equipment aspects

35. Plant Safety

36. Plant Safety 36

37. Plant Safety 37

38. Plant Safety 38

39. Plant Safety 39

40. Working at heights • Management and Supervisors are responsible for ensuring that: • Use of ladders should only be considered if other safer alternatives, such as scaffolding or elevating work platforms, are not reasonably practicable • Risk Assessments are carried out for activities involving working at heights • Safe Work Procedures or guidelines are developed specifically for these activities • All identified Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment (PPCE) is available and in good order before work commences • OHS707 Working from Heights Guideline

41. Plant Safety 41

42. Gas Cylinders • Never transport in a lift with people • Only keep cylinders “in use” in labs • Check appropriateness of regulator to the cylinder • Perform leak testing • Don’t store or transport incompatible cylinders together • Ensure valve shut • Open valve fully then back off 2 turns • Remove regulator to transport • Use trolley for transport and push trolley in front of you • Wear PPE to transport • No oil or grease on oxygen regulators • Do not drop, roll or drag cylinders

43. Electrical Safety • Working safely with electricity • Check that laboratory electrical equipment has been tagged • Do not use double adaptors – poorly designed with no overload protection • Use RCDs on powerboards and extension leads • Powerboards must be correctly mounted • Use extension cords as a temporary measure only • Do not bring untested electrical equipment into the workplace

44. Ignition Sources A source of energy sufficient to ignite combustible dusts, flammable vapours or gases etc. Examples include: (a) a naked flame, (b) exposed incandescent material, (c) hot surfaces, (d) radiant heat, (e) a spark from mechanical friction, (f) a spark from static electricity, (g) an electrical arc, (h) any electrical, electronic, mechanical or other equipment. 44

45. Spill preparedness and response All laboratories must have: • Procedures for potential emergencies • Spill kits • Training sessions/drills to ensure all lab users know how to respond to an emergency UNSW Documentation: • OHS421 Chemical Spills Guideline • OHS301 PCB Spill Response and Disposal Procedure • OHS305 Spills Procedure – Mercury • Science Faculty OHS site http://www.med.unsw.edu.au/ohswebsci.nsf • Medicine Faculty OHS site http://ohs.med.unsw.edu.au/ohsweb.nsf

46. Spill preparedness and response • Contain the spill • Absorb the spill • Dispose of used materials • Report the spill • Restock spill kit

47. Domestic Broken glass Sharps Chemical Biological Cytotoxic Animal carcasses Radioactive Schedule 8 Human tissue Co-mingled General laboratory waste Waste Segregation and Disposal All waste needs to be segregated into its waste stream according to the UNSW Hazardous Waste Procedure. • Documentation: • OHS014a Waste Disposal Form - Chemical – UNSW • OHS321 Laboratory Hazardous Waste Disposal Guideline

48. Waste Disposal • Chemical waste treatment and disposal • Store the waste correctly – appropriate containers, bunding • Label the waste accurately (contact name, date, inventory) • Segregate the waste – do not mix incompatible chemicals • Submit a chemical waste inventory form to Facilities Mgt fax x54532

49. WASTE DISPOSAL • Options for biological waste treatment and disposal • Bio-waste to go into a labelled bio-waste bag and put it into the yellow bins (these are collected by the contractor and autoclaved), or • Autoclave the labelled bio-waste and put it into the yellow bins, or • Autoclave the waste AND VALIDATE THE LOAD, then de-identify the waste by putting it into a robust black plastic bag which goes into the domestic waste • Note: Chemically decontaminated liquid bio-waste is now chemical waste and must only be collected by the chemical contractor.

50. Fume Cupboards