Laboratory Safety

1. Why is Safety Important?
• Many potential hazards in
Veterinary Medicine
–Anesthesia
–Radiology
–Zoonosis
–Chemicals
–Physical Hazards
–Animals
–Sharp objects
–Heavy lifting

2. Specific Hazards in Clinical
Pathology include:
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
Physical Hazards
Electrical Hazards
Chemical Hazards
Biological Hazards

3. Safety
• You need to make sure that:
•The veterinarian is safe
•The technicians/veterinary
assistants are safe
•The owner is safe
•The animal is safe
•Everyone is kept safe

4. Physical
Hazards

5. Physical Dangers
• Animal handling
–Animals are unpredictable
–Anticipate bites and scratches
•Don’t put yourself in a position to
be bitten.
–Use your safety equipment
•Muzzles – for cats and dogs
•Leashes – or towels to pick up
•Gloves – for raptors & exotics
•Bondage – cat bag or tape for feet

6. Muzzle!

7. Heavy Lifting
• Animal can be heavy!
–Lift only up to 40 pounds alone
–Lift only what you are capable of
lifting
–Use the buddy lift often
–Always lift with the power of
your legs, not your back
–Back injury does not go away!!!

8. Electrical
Hazards

9. Electrical
• Could shock you or your patient
–Ground all equipment thoroughly
–Disconnect electrical equipment
before repairs or replacement of
bulbs and other items
–Check for exposed wires & have
them fixed before use
–Keep cords away from birds,
rabbits and young chewy critters

11. Fire
• Can burn you and/or others
–Know where to find blankets, fire
extinguishers & other equipment
–Have a fire plan for escape
–Find out what the policy is for
animals?
–Use care with Bunsen burners,
open flames, dryers, autoclaves &
other potential fire hazards

12. Potential Fire Hazards

13. Moving Parts
• Use care when handling
equipment with moving parts
–Centrifuge
•Never open it until it has fully stopped
moving
•Use only if you have been trained
•Must be balanced when running
•Must be operated with the lid latched
•Must be cleaned immediately if
anything is spilled or broken

14. Moving Parts
• Dryer
–Never reach in until it has fully
stopped
–Check the lint trap regularly

15. Chemical
Hazards

16. Chemical Hazards
• Chemicals may cause burns
–Careful when working with strong
acids & bases – wear protective gear
–Careful not to splash chemicals
–Wash off immediately any you do
get on your skin or in your eyes
•Know where the eye station is
–Label all chemicals properly according
to OSHA standards
•OSHA = Occupational safety and
hazards association

17. Chemical
• May be poisonous
–Toxic fumes
•always use a fume hood
–Never put things in your mouth
•Needle capping
•Pipettes
• May be carcinogenic
–Double gloving & special safety
equipment may be used

18. Biological
Hazards

19. Biological
• Zoonosis
–Disease that is communicable from
animal to man
–We can get it from animals and we
can pass it to other animals
•Handle all specimens carefully
•Gloves should be used if you have any
open wounds or cuts on hands
•No eating or drinking in the work area

20. Zoonosis
• Toxoplasmosis
– Protozoan parasite causes damage to
unborn fetus
• Other Parasites
– VLM, CLM, Mites, Ringworm, etc.
• Rabies
– Deadly disease of warm-blooded
mammals
• Cat Scratch Fever
– bacterial, cat is not sick - anaerobic
infection from bacteria under their nails

21. Other Hazardous
Substances
• DMSO
– DIMETHYL SULFOXIDE
• Formaldehyde
• MLV Vaccines
–Modified live vaccines
• Euthanasia solution

22. MSDS
• All potential hazardous chemical that
you come into contact with in your
working environment will have an
MSDS. (Material Safety Data Sheet)
• The MSDS will list information on
that chemical including:
–Hazardous ingredient information
–Physical/chemical characteristics
–Fire/explosive data
–Precautions
–Control measures
–and much more

23. MSDS
• Know where you clinic or
hospital keeps their MSDS
• Kept in a binder in a place
accessible to all - Pharmacy
• Know where to find information
on the chemicals you work with

24. Waste Management
• An ongoing problem in Vet. Med.
• Any item used to diagnose, treat,
or vaccinate an animal becomes
waste
• Each type of waste is disposed of
in a specific fashion regulated by
OSHA
–Occupational Safety and Hazard Ass.

25. 4 Categories of Waste
• Medical Waste
• Biohazardous Sharps
• Biohazardous Non-Sharp
• Hazardous
–We will not have contact with
hazardous waste

26. Medical Solid Waste
• Items that do not contain bodily
secretions
–Non bloody/dried blood gauze or
bandage material
–Gloves, no blood or contaminants
–Soiled cage newspapers
–Feces, Urine
• May be disposed of with regular
trash, then into a locked
dumpster prior to pickup

27. Biohazardous Waste
• Any lab waste that may pose a
threat to health
–Blood, tissue, cultures etc.
–Blood soaked gauze
–Bloody or infected bandages
–Dead tissue/body parts
• If not sharp, disposed of in red
biohazardous bags

28. Sharps Waste
• Any item used in the Dx, Tx, or
Immunization that has a sharp
edge that may puncture skin
–Slides/coverslips
–Needles and syringes
–Glassware used in testing
–Scalpel Blades
• Must be disposed of in a puncture
proof, rigid “Sharps” container

29. Hazardous Waste
• Poses a significant threat to
human safety
–chemotherapeutic agents
–Pesticides
–pharmaceutical products
• Each item should be disposed of
using a specific rigid protocol.
• We don’t usually come in contact
with these.

30. Sharp’s Containers
• Must be labeled with:
–Hospital name
–Address
–Phone number
–Date circulated
• Do not fill higher than fill line or
¾ full
• May be kept for 6 months or ¾
full – then disposed properly

31. Biohazardous Bags
• Must be labeled with:
–Hospital name
–Address
–Phone number
–Date circulated
• May be kept for 6 months or ¾
full – then disposed properly
• Both Bio Bags and Sharp’s must
be sealed & sterilized when full

32. Disposal
• Pay a licensed biomedical waste
pickup firm to process your waste
– many clinics do this
• Hauler agreement and receipts must
be kept
• Autoclave the waste yourself and put
it into your locked dumpster for
disposal
• Records of autoclave maintenance &
quality control, as well as waste
weight amounts must be kept

33. Use the Common Sense
Approach
• Wash your hands often
• Clean up spills immediately
• Close cupboards and drawers
when not in use
• All ways keep cages clean
• Avoid lifting heavy objects
• Avoid bites & scratches

34. Use the Common Sense
Approach
• Use your safety devices
• If unsure, ask
• Be careful with cords and
electricity or open flame
• Pass sharp instruments handle
first – scalpels, needles
• Keep hair back, jewelry to a
minimum

35. Use the Common Sense
Approach
• Dispose of biohazardous
items correctly
–Biohazardos bags
–Sharps containers
• If injured inform an Instructor
immediately!
• Use common sense!!!

36. Injury Protocol
• Notify an instructor
• Get help to put away patient or
needle/syringe
• Clean wound with soap and water
• Write out proper injury form
– See instructor or Carol
• Seek medical attention at the
student Health Center

37. Personnel Rules
• No Food, drink, candy, smoking
or gum is allowed in the
classroom or lab area
during class time
• A white lab coat must be worn
during lab class
• Hair must be tied back and
jewelry to a minimum

38. Personnel Rules
• Bare feet, high heels and sandals
are not allowed in the lab
• Exam gloves must be worn
when cuts or open sores are
present on hands
• Hands should be washed
with soap and water before &
after laboratory procedures

39. Personnel Rules
• Hands should be washed with
soap & water after handling all
animals or contaminated materials
• Heavy animals should be lifted by
2 or more people using their legs
not their backs
• An animal should be muzzled if
there is any doubt as to its
behavior

40. Personnel Rules
• Any accident must be reported
to the instructor immediately
• Horseplay is not allowed in the
lab areas
• Keep overall noise levels low
when animals are in the area,
loud noises frighten animals

41. Equipment Rules
• Never use any equipment until
you have been adequately
trained on it’s use and have
been given permission to use it
• Always use the manufacture’s
instructions for operating
equipment
• If in doubt, ask!

42. Equipment Rules
• If you are uncomfortable doing a
task on your own, ask an
instructor for help
• You must pay strict attention to
instructions and directions before
beginning any task
• All sharps are to be disposed of
in the proper red sharps
container

43. Equipment Rules
• Pass all sharps handle first
• Do not overload circuits with
ungrounded 3-prong adaptors or
extension cords
• Keep electrical cords up off the
floor and out of the path of foot
traffic
• Avoid working with fluids around
electrical wires and equipment

44. Equipment Rules
• Clean all equipment immediately
after use and store it properly
• Do not leave containers uncapped
and subject to evaporation,
contamination or spillage
• Some of the reagents &
chemicals in the lab can be
caustic & may stain skin or
clothing

45. Facility Rules
• Students are responsible for
cleaning the work areas
properly before beginning
laboratory procedures and at the
end of every period
• Absolutely no food / drink for
human consumption is allowed in
the specimen refrigerators

46. Facility Rules
• Clean up spills immediately, so
that no one falls or an animal
ingests it
• Always clean a cage before you
put an animal into it
• Keep all cupboards and drawers
closed
• Keep sinks free of debris

47. Facility Rules
• Immediately report any unsafe
equipment, furniture or behavior
to the instructor

48. Review Questions
• Why do we need to know about
safety in the field we choose to
work in??
• Because we need to insure that
we, and anyone around us is not
injured due to our ignorance.

49. Review Questions
• Name three hazards in the
workplace and how to avoid
them.
• Fire
– No open flames
– Inspect all cords
– Ground properly

50. Review Questions
• What is biohazardous waste and
what do we do with it??
• Biohazardous waste is any lab
waste that may pose a threat to
our health
–Disposed of in red biohazardous
bags or “sharps” containers

51. Review Questions
• Explain what using “common
sense” means, and give some
examples of using it.
• Common sense means we think
before we act.
–Washing our hands often
–Using safety equipment
–Asking for help if needed

52. Let’s Stay Safe!!!