Laboratory Safety Management

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Laboratory Safety Management

• Mr W C HO
• Science Education Section, EMB

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Outline

• Discussion
• Laboratory Safety Management
• Responsibility
• Safety awareness
• Risk assessments
• Staff training
• Monitoring and review

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Laboratory Accidents (2002/03)
Phy Chem Bio IS ES
Chemical on skin 0 34 3 10 0
Eye accidents 0 14 1 18 0
Chemical spillage 2 18 4 6 0
Heat Burns 2 53 13 109 1
Inhalation of gas 0 2 0 0 0
Cuts 6 24 62 73 0
Substances catching fire 0 5 1 2 0
Bites by animals 0 0 0 1 0
Others 2 2 1 6 0
12 152 85 225 1
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Accident Rates (02/03)

• 422 Schools responded
• 475 cases in 148 schools (35)
• about 72 cases due to cuts and burns
• 1.46 cases per 1,000 students
• In 2002,
• Road traffic accident rate 2.3 cases per 1,000
  population (Transport Dept)
• Industrial accident rate 37.4 cases per 1,000
  workers (OSHC)
• 3.61 cases per 10,000 practical periods

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Survey on School Laboratory Accidents (2005/06)

• CM No.193/2006
• http//cd.emb.gov.hk/sc_survey
• input the data on or before 30 Nov 2006

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Why accidents happen?
Inadequate Safety Training
Inadequate Instructions
Careless
Unsafe Experiments
Over crowding
Inadequate Facilities
Inadequate Equipment
Inadequate Preparation
Misbehavior
Ignorance
Teaching Experiences
Poor Laboratory Management
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Education Regulation 279A (21)

• The responsible person shall ensure that all
  necessary safety precautions are adopted in
  school workshops and science laboratories and
  shall modify or extend those precautions as the
  Permanent Secretary may require.
• ????????????????????????????,?????????????????????
  ??

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Science Teachers Legal Liability

• If an accident and injury occurs during a science
  class, a science teachers legal liability for
  that injury will be judged by considering some of
  the following criteria
• Did he/she use appropriate activities for the
  grade level?
• Did he/she give careful instruction of all
  aspects of the activity?
• Did he/she teach safety rules, and satisfy
  himself/herself that the students understood the
  activity and safety requirements ( safety tests
  are helpful)?
• Did he/she carefully supervise the activity?
• Did he/she strictly enforce safety rules?
• British Columbia

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Managing Laboratory Safety Effectively

• Ensure objectives are met and to seek improvement
• Safety Policy
• Commitment of management in improving safety
• Defines procedures and areas of responsibility in
  order to promote safe working for students and
  staff
• Reviewed and revised regularly

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Responsibilities in maintaining a safe learning
and working environment

• Who should be responsible?
• Students
• Teachers
• Laboratory Technicians
• Panel Chairpersons
• School Authority
• Safety is Everyones Responsibility
• Have you perform your duties? (????????)

Accident Case10/2001
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Students

• Know and follow all safety rules
• Be alert in the laboratory
• Do not attempt unauthorised activities
• Exercise proper experimental techniques
• Consider the safety of oneself and the others
• Read and study lab manual before coming to class
• Report lab accidents to teacher immediately
• Keep area clean.
• Proper disposal of biological and chemical waste.
• Do not enter preparation or store rooms

Accident Case5/2000
Safety Rules
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Teachers

• Ensure the safety of all practical activities and
  must be thorough in preparation
• Try out experiments in advance
• Check that technicians know how to carry out
  safely the requested hazardous operations
• Issue students with safety rules and explain what
  they mean and why they are necessary
• Give clear instructions to students and remind
  them of the potential hazards and safety
  precautions
• Provide sufficient supervision and guidance to
  students during experiments
• Insist students to use proper PPE
• Never leave students unsupervised in the lab
• Familarise with the operation of safety
  facilities and emergency procedures

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Panel Chairpersons

• Set and model high standards of safety
• Raise everyones concern on safety
• Ensure all panel members provide adequate safety
  instructions and equipment to students
• Be well informed of laws, rules and regulations
  concerning safety, assist school principal in
  formulating and implementation of safety policy
• Co-ordinate the provision of safety resources /
  facilities
• Organize/co-ordinate professional development on
  safety
• Access and disseminate up-to-date safety
  information to teaching and technical staff
• Keep a record of all accidents and details of
  treatment given
• Develop and implement a regular schedule for
  safety inspection

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Laboratory Technicians

• Have responsibilities for each others safety and
  should warning each other of hazardous situations
• Co-operate with safety policies of panel, school
  and EMB, etc.
• Prepare, operate and maintain apparatus and
  equipment
• Procurement of stores and equipment
• Tryout experiments
• Provide assistance in class demonstrations
• Assist teachers in supervising students
  performing experiments
• Observe all the normal safeguard in a laboratory
• Familarise with the operation of safety
  facilities and emergency procedures
• Check regularly to ensure all safety measures are
  in place
• Supervise the work of other LTs / laboratory
  attendants

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School Authority

• Ensure school complies with the Education
  Ordinance
• Builds up an effective management system
• Draw up safety policies, administrative and
  operational procedures
• Set up an accountability mechanism for such
  policies and procedures including how to handling
  emergencies
• Provide necessary safety facilities and equipment
• Support professional development on safety

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Safety Procedures/Plans

• Includes
• Emergency procedures
• How new staff are to be inducted?
• How students are to be trained in safety
  awareness?
• How should safety equipment be kept?
• How new safety information are disseminated?
• In what circumstances non-scientists may use
  laboratories?
• How safety matters get onto the agenda of
  departmental meetings?
• What procedures for risk assessment are to be
  adopted in open-ended investigations or project?
• Event ? Procedure ? Effective result

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Online Laboratory Information Management System

• Accidents occurred
• Experiments in different levels and subjects,
• Booking of laboratories, inventory of relevant
  documents and equipment

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Reporting of Laboratory Accidents
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Promoting Safety Awareness

• The most effective way to eliminate accidents
• Develop and maintain safety and health awareness
  among all students and personnel
• Recognize and promote safe work practices and
  reinforce positive attitudes towards safety
• General and specific safety rules

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Designing Safety Poster
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Safety Demonstrations
Acid in the Eye
Holey Socks
Pie in the Face
It doesnt look hot!
When Wig Head Go Bad
Lab Safety Challenge
Flaming Vapour Ramp
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Safety in Exploring Science

• Interactive learning package
• On-line and CD-ROM versions
• http//resources.emb.gov.hk/ses

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Learning and Teaching Resources on Safety in
Science Laboratories

• Laboratory Safety Rules
• Eye Protection
• Safety Information on Chemicals
• Risk Assessment
• What if a Laboratory Accident Happens?
  (discussion activities)
• http//cd.emb.gov.hk/sci

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Are your experiments safe?

• Teachers must be careful when selecting
  experiments from various sources, especially
  older books and laboratory manuals prepared by
  others, etc.
• As needed, teachers should consult science
  journals and publications to keep current on
  safety techniques
• Discuss with your colleagues including science
  teachers and laboratory technicians

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Microscale Version
Pins
Shampoo solution
0.4 M NaOH
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Risk Assessment

• No experiment is completely safe and without risk
• Any experiment worth doing is worth doing safely
• Do it this way, rarely say Don't do this

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Risk Assessment

• An analysis of a practical activity to identify
  hazards and to take precautions to minimise the
  risk
• Procedures
• Identifying hazards (Materials / Procedures /
  Equipment)
• Assessing how likely the hazard will actually
  cause harm (risk)
• Deciding what control measures to reduce risk to
  acceptable level
• Finding how to dispose of hazardous residues
• Review

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Reducing the Risks

• Using safer alternatives
• Modifying experimental procedures
• Reducing the scale of experiments
• Reducing the concentrations of solutions
• Using protective measures
• Wearing appropriate PPE
• Alasdair Thorpe, Chemistry Review, Sept 2000

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Thermometer

• Digital thermometer
• No-roll thermometer sleeve
• Break-safe thermometer (encased in a PVC coating,
  10-100oC)
• Low toxicity non-mercury filled thermometer, max
  110 / 330oC

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Hand Protector ?????
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Monitoring and Review

• See whether management system and practices is
  working as planned and risk control measures are
  effective and maintained
• Enquiries at departmental meetings
• Discussions with teachers/LTs/students
• Schemes of work, student worksheets, laboratory
  request forms, accident records, etc.
• Occasional lesson observations
• Safety Inspection /Audits
• Keep record of monitoring e.g. inspection
  checklists
• Standing Committee on Laboratory Safety

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Self-learning Programme, SEPO, HKUST

• http//www.ab.ust.hk/sepo/training/

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Good Laboratory Practices
Distribution of Equipment
Spectacle Cabinet
Bunsen Burner Screen
Flexicam
Yellow Line
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Manage a Safe LT Environment

• Good Bye!