Lecture 5- Environmental Health and Safety Flashcards
What are some hazards veterinarians are exposed to in workplace
Animal-inflicted injuries
Exposure to hazardous chemicals, drugs and medications
Back injuries
Exposure to radiation or waste anesthetic gases
Injuries from violence
What is PLIT
Professional liability, business and personal insurance for veterinarians from AVMA
What are 5 commonly observed safety risks according to PLIT
Mishandling of hazardous materials
Slip, trip, fall risks
Lack of formal safety program
Inadequate bite prevention and animal handling protocols
Poor ergonomics
What is the hierarchy of controls from most effective (top) to least effective (bottom)
Elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls
What does elimination include and what is an example
Physically remove the hazard, preferred solution to protect workers because no exposure can occur
Ex: changing the work process to stop using toxic chemical, heavy object or sharp tool
What does substitution include and what is an example
Replace the hazard, safer alternative. Reduce potential for harmful effects and do not create new risks
Example: using Plant based printing inks instead of solvent based inks
What does engineering controls include
Isolate people from the hazard, reduce contact with workers
Example: modify equipment or workspace , protective barriers, ventilation
What is administrative control
Change the way people work, reduce duration, frequency or intensity of exposure.
Example: work process training, job rotation, ensuring adequate rest breaks, limiting access
What is PPE
Protect the worker with personal protective equipment
Example: gloves, safety glasses, hearing protection, hard hats, respirators
OSHA
Checks for workplace hazards, there are 200 points of compliance for every veterinary facility
What are the top 10 OSHA violations
Hazard communication program
Certification of PEE assessment
Fire and emergency plans
Employee training documentation
Material safety data sheets
Appropriate PPE
Chemical labeling
OSHA forms
Human food in Unsafe Areas
Waste anesthetic gases
Hazard communication program
Written plan dealing with chemicals
Certification of PPE assessment
Employers must document that an assessment of each employee’s personal protective equipment has been completed
Fire and emergency plans
follow OSHA guidelines to prepare employees to deal with fires and emergency evacuations for facilities with 11 or more employees
Employee training documentation
Training documents maintained that employees were trained in all aspects of written plans, PPE, hazards of workplace and training sessions annually
Material safety data sheets (MSDS)
Maintained for all chemicals listed as hazardous
Appropriate PPE
PPE must be proved to all employees
Chemical labeling
All chemical containers must be labeled with both the product name and appropriate caution, secondary containers must be labeled once filled, on average veterinary facilities have 100 inappropriately labeled chemical containers
OSHA forms
Must post appropriate OSHA poster in their workplace and employers with 11 or more employees must also maintain OSHA form 300, log of injuries and illness
Human food in unsafe areas
Human food should not be eaten, prepared or stored in areas with possible biological or chemical hazard
Waste anesthetic gases
System must be in place to prevent waste anesthetic gases from building up in area of use. Must have gas absorbing canister or high power fan
What does MSDS sheet contain
Information on potential hazards and how to work safely with chemical products, information on use, storage, and handling and emergency procedures, what to expect with exposure
what is medical waste according to EPA
Any solid waste that is generated in the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals, in research pertaining to, or production of testing of biologicals
What are some common examples of biomedical waste
Needles and syringes
Used bandages and gloves
Animal tissue
Blood and feces
Medications
Regulated medical waste (RMW)
Typically a subset of medical waste that poses a significant risk of transmitting infection to people
RMW in veterinary facilities limited to
Sharpe waste (needles, syringes with attached needles, suture needles, scalpels), animal carcasses, body parts, bedding and related waste when animals are intentionally infected with organisms likely to be pathogenic to healthy humans for purposes of research
Medical waste vs regulated medical waste example
No infectious animal tissue are biomedical waste not regulated medical waste so can be put into regular solids waste stream
Arizona biohazardous medical waste
Cultures or stocks, blood products, medical sharps, animal carcasses, body parts and bedding of animals infected with agents
What 2 ways can medical sharps be handled
Generator can either treat waste and handle themselves or ship waste off site for treatment
What syringes do not need to go in medical sharps container
Syringes that have never had a needle attached, syringes where needle or sharp had be attached and separate from syringe
When are syringes considered not biohazardous
Syringes never attached to needle, syringes separated from needle, if they are not composed of bioharzardous items and do not contain discarded drugs or another regulated substance
What must a generator obtain by transporter
Copy of tracking document signed by transporter signifying acceptance of biohazardous medical waste
What should biohazardous medical waste that doesn’t include sharps be put in
Red disposable plastic bag that is leak resistance, impervious to moisture, sufficient strength to prevent tearing, sealed to prevent leakage during transport, place in secondary container
Storage of biohazardous medical waste and solid waste
Can be stored alongside each other but the storage area shall not be used to store substances for human consumption or for medical supplies
How many days can biohazardous medical waste stay in facilities before picked up
90 days or less
How does EPA classifying RMW
industrial waste, which is a subset of non-hazardous waste
What happens if hazardous and non-hazardous are combined
All materials are treated as hazardous
What are the characteristics of hazardous waste
Ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, toxicity
You dispose a needle that was used to give IV fluids in the sharps. What category of waste is the sharps container
RMW
Your veterinary practice delivers antineoplastic pharmaceutical that is listed as hazardous waste via IV line and in the process of the delivering the drug, the IV line is contaminated with blood. What category of waste is the IV line
Hazardous
You dispose of the IV line in sharps container what category waste in sharps container
Hazardous
What two branches can solid waste be broken into
Hazardous and non-hazardous waste
What are types of hazardous waste
Listed waste, characteristic waste, universal waste, mixed waste, dual waste, household hazardous waste
What are types of non-hazardous waste
Municipal solid waste (poop) and industrial solid waste (body parts)
What is the veterinary compliance assistance
Funded by EPA, provides pollution prevention and compliance assistance information. Covers veterinary hospital wastes and all the rules that apply to them
Biological substance, category A
Materials known to contain certain etiologic agents, infectious substances transported in a form which, when exposure occurs it is capable of causing permanent disability or life threatening or fatal disease of humans or animals
Biological substance, category B
Excreta, secrets, blood and its components, tissue, tissue fluids. Being shipped for purpose of diagnosis or investigation
What materials are exempt from biological substance categories
Materials that do not contain infectious substance or that is unlikely to cause disease in humans or animals
What is an example of category A biological substance
Bacillus anthrasis, brucellosis abortus, chlamydia pstittaci or eastern equine encephalitis virus
What is an example of category B biological substances
Leptospirosis or suspected but not confirmed cases of category A infectious substances
What are some examples exempt from being classified in biological substance categories
Chemistries, of samples that are non-infectious like cancer biopsies
How do category A biological substances need to be packaged
Watertight primary container for specimens, absorbent material, watertight secondary container with lists of contents on the outside, United Nations rated rigid outer container with proper UN labeling
How do category B biological substances need to be packaged
Leak proof primary container with specimen, absorbent material and leak proof secondary packaging like a sealed plastic bag, rigid outer package with proper markers
How should exempt biological substances be packaged
Leak proof primary container with specimen, absorbent material and leak proof secondary packaging like a sealed plastic bag, rigid outer package marked “exempt animal specimen”
Biohazard symbols or bags should not be used
What training is required to ship category A biological substances
Specific formal training and documentation is required for all staff who package or transports items
What training is required to ship category B biological substances
Training required for all staff who package and transport, veterinarians who ship cultures must be hazmat trained
Who oversees the conservation, protection and enhancement of soil, water and related natural resources
USDA natural resources conservation service
Who publishes policies and procedures for issuance of national pollutant discharge elimination system
EPA
Manure management
Contain so doesn’t contaminate waterways
Protect air quality- lagoons- undergo anaerobic respiration and pre-treat waste before it is used for fertilizer.
Reduce nutrient content of manure by manipulating food and genetics
Recommendations from US fish and wildlife service to prevent secondary poisoning from pentobarbital
Cremate, bury deeply, prevent access of scavengers, educate clients on proper disposal, tag animal remains
Depopulation primary mechanisms
Physical disruption of brain activity (blunt cranial trauma, PCD, gunshot)
Hypoxia (controlled low atmospheric pressure for poultry, N2, Ar, exsanguination
Direct depression of neurons function for life (CO2)
Eplileptiform brain activity (electrical stunning)
What might be the only option to rapidly depopulate
Ventilation shutdown
What are three common methods of carcass disposal
Incineration, burying, rendering
What is the most preferred disposal method
Incineration
