Lab Safety Flashcards
What type of hazards are there in a lab?
- Physical
- Chemical
- Biological
What are the rules for lab?
- Safety first priority
- No eating, drinking, smoking, applying cosmetics, or handling contact lenses
- No horseplay
- Wear PPE
- Needle not recapped, bent, cut, broken, removed from syringes, or manipulated by hand
- Minimize formation of droplets, spatters, splashes, and spills
- Clean spills promptly
- Clean/decontaminate all surfaces
- Inform COC of accidents, exposures, or unsafe procedures
What are Universal Precautions?
- Infection control strategy to reduce the risk of disease transmission
- Introduced by CDC in response to HIV epidemic in 1985
Blood and other potentially infectious material is treated as infected by what until proven otherwise?
- HIV
- Hep C
- Hep B
When should personal protective barriers be used when exposure to blood or body fluids may occur?
All the time
Who publishes guidelines that most agencies have adopted?
CDC
Universal Precautions apply to what?
- Blood
- Tissue
- Semen
- Other bodily fluids (9 additional fluids)
Universal Precautions do not apply to what?
- Feces
- Nasal secretions
- Sputum
- Sweat
- Tears
- Urine/vomit unless they contain blood
What are some general rules for wearing PPE with infectious waste safety precautions?
- Specialized clothing/equipment must be worn
- General work clothes are not considered PPE
- All PPE must be removed and hands washed prior to leaving work area
What does PPE include with infectious waste safety precautions?
- Gloves
- Gowns, aprons, lab coats
- Eye protection/face shields
- Caps
- Shoes
- Covers
- Masks
What are some general guidelines for gloves as part of PPE?
- Worn when possibility of contact with infectious material may happen
- Worn when person’s hands are abraded or active dermatitis present
- Disposable gloves (usually latex/vinyl) are appropriate size
- Replace ASAP when broken/contaminated
- No washing/decontaminating disposable gloves
- Hypoallergenic gloves for people with allergies
When are Gowns, Aprons, and Lab coats to be worn?
When a procedure has the ability to generate splashes of potentially infected substances or hazardous chemicals
What are general guidelines for Eye protection as part of PPE?
- Worn whenever splashes may occur
- Face shields must be chin length
- Goggles must have solid side shields
What is the governing instruction for lab safety requirements and procedures
CLIP DoD Instruction 6440.02
- Clinical Laboratory Improvement Program
What are the federal regulations pertaining to lab safety?
- OSHA Act of 1970
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
- Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
What are the Code of Federal Regulations?
- Annually revised compendium of federal laws in the US published in Federal Register
- Regulations pertaining to transportation of hazardous waste
What does each state have in regard to lab safety?
- Occupational Safety and Regulations
- Department of Health and Human Services & Medical Waste Management Program
What is the purpose of state Occupational Safety and Health regulations?
Protects works and the public from safety hazards
What is the purpose of state Department of Health and Human Services and Medical Waste Management Program?
Protect the public and the environment from potential infectious exposure to disease causing agents
What are medical departments on ships considered?
Non-fixed Medical Treatment Facilities
What does CLIP certification allow?
Testing of clinical samples for utilization in diagnosis patients
How often is CLIP inspection and who performs it?
- Every 2 years
- Performed by Medical Laboratory Officer or appointed Lab Tech from hospital within AOR
CLIP records must include what?
- Quality control on samples, test kits, and analyzers
- Log on refrigerator/freezer temperatures
- Maintenance logs for equipment maintained by biomed
Can ships request a technical assist visit from AOR’s hospital?
Yes
What are the two instructions from BUMED in regards to lab?
- BUMED 6280.1 Series Management of Infectious Waste
- NAVEDTRA 14295 Series, Chap 19
What is another instruction pertaining to lab used by armed forces?
Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA)
What is pertinent info to SOFA?
- Agreement between a host nation and military forces
- When the two rules contradict, go with the more strict rule
What is considered non-infectious waste pertain to?
- Medical waste that does not contain enough pathogen to be harmful
- EX:
- Disposable products such as diapers and tissue paper
- Bedpans, Urinary catheters, Nasogastric tubing
- Containers rinsed free of regulated body fluids
What are the guidelines for Infectious Storage?
- Mark storage room exterior with Biohazard and Authorized personnel only sign
- Storage room should be near treatment/transport site and lockable
- Keep clean/free of pests/rodents
- Limit storage to 7 days
What are the guidelines for Infectious waste disposal ashore?
- Comply with local, state, and federal laws and/or SOFA
- Package, treated, and labeled
- Monitoring system to include
- Date
- Time
- Amount
- Type
- Disposition
What are the guidelines for overboard discharge of Infectious waste disposal afloat?
One of the following must be basis for discharge:
- Endangers health/safety
- Creates unacceptable nuisance
- Compromise of combat readiness
What are the conditions for overboard discharge of Infectious waste disposal afloat?
- CO’s approval
- Must be greater than 50 miles offshore
- Properly packaged and weighted for negative buoyancy
- Entries made in the ship’s deck log and medical journal indicating:
- Date
- Time
- Ship’s location
- Number of bags
What do you do with unused medical supplies?
- Handled, stored, and disposed of as infectious
- Recycle
What are the materials needed for decontamination?
- Gloves
- Gown/lab coat
- Goggles/face shield
- Absorbent materials (Spill kit)
- Disinfectant approved by EPA for shipboard use
What are the procedures for decontamination?
- Countertops should be decon’ed with approved disinfectant
- Infectious waste spills should be decon’ed by applying appropriate disinfectant
- If broken tube/glass, use absorbent material and then mechanical means
- Dispose of waste properly
