Experimental Risk Assessment

1. Experimental Risk Assessment Brian Meschewski Research Safety Professional Division of Research Safety

2. Would you cross a busy road without looking? Why not? What would you do to cross a road safely?

3. What about this road?

4. Hazard vs Risk While related, Hazard and Risk are notthe same! Are routinely used incorrectly

5. Hazard Hazard: An inherent property of a material or situation that cannot be altered A hazard can be chemical, biological, radiological, physical Example: Hydrochloric acid (corrosive) Example: Electrical source

6. Risk Risk: The probability that a hazard will result in an adverse consequence, and the severity of that consequence Example: 10 mL hydrochloric acid from an extraction kit, protocol included compared to 100 mL hydrochloric acid from a 2.5 L bottle, SOP adapted from a paper. The HCl has the same corrosive hazard, but one will result in a more severe consequence if a spill were to occur. Working with a larger volume is also more likely to result in a spill. Risk can be applied to property and materials as well as people Risk can be controlled

7. How do I perform a risk assessment? RAMP Recognize the hazards (Hazard Identification) Assess the risks of the hazards Minimize the risks of the hazards Prepare for emergencies

8. Recognize the Hazards Hazard Identification First step to a good risk assessment Hazards can come from multiple sources in the lab and experiment Identify your materials, instruments, experimental conditions, and anything that can create a hazard *Brief overview of some common laboratory hazards. These will be more detailed in their individual presentations.

10. Radiological hazard Laser hazard

11. Experimental Techniques What experimental techniques will you be using, and are you familiar with the associated hazards? Syringe Transferring flammable liquids Transferring solids Gases Inerting Quenching

12. Hazardous Conditions What experimental conditions will be used? Elevated or reduced pressure? Is the equipment rated for this? Electrical sources? Agitating a reaction? Compressed gases? Radiation sources?

13. Assess the risks Determine the risks posed by hazards during an experiment Think about the risks you are exposed to in the laboratory outside of your experiment Who performs a risk assessment? Everyone entering the laboratory should perform a risk assessment, even if you are not performing an experiment

14. A risk assessment can be viewed as an equation It is the combination of the probability of a consequence occurring and the severity of that consequence Risk (R) = Probability of Occurrence (P) x Severity of Consequence (S) Assess the risks

15. Simple risk assessment approach Risk (R) = Probability of Occurrence (P) x Severity of Consequence (S)

16. Simple Risk Assessment Approach We want to stay in the “green” Yellow can normally be reworked to get into the green by controlling the risk in a new or different way Avoid red Might require that you rethink how the work is going to be performed

17. Simple Risk Assessment Approach Walk through your procedure, and determine where that step, material, process, etc. falls on the graph If necessary, implement a control to get the procedure in the green

18. Risk Assessment Tools More hazards that can pose a risk exist than might be obvious Assist in walking you through questions that might identify hazards and assign risk Many different tools exist Some are more effective for certain types of experiments or lab tasks, some may not make sense for the lab at all Common examples include: What-If? Analysis Job Hazard Analysis Risk Assessment Matrix Common tool in use with labs ACS has a template, good for a variety of lab hazards

19. Do I always have to fill out a risk assessment form? With more experience and practice, risk assessments can become second nature. A risk assessment performed mentally can alert you to the same hazards. Most young scientists are unable to evaluate all aspects of experiments or processes without following a form. Filling in blanks does not mean you are safe, you have to critically think about everything you write down. Assess the risks

20. What-If? Analysis A What-If? Analysis is a simple tool that can be used to help perform a risk assessment

21. What-If? Analysis A What-If? Analysis can help you decide where your step falls on the scale It is most effective in a team setting It is easy to use Beginners can easily grasp it Limitations Only useful if the right questions are asked Relies on the team members to ask those questions Subjective Bias

23. Job Hazard Analysis OK for routine lab functions Focuses on one “job” and can function as the SOP for that job Allows you to be consistent when the same task is performed by various people Limitations Steps can be missed Assigning risk can be difficult

26. Risk Assessment Matrix Good for all sorts of lab experiments Are more detailed than some other tools Require you to think critically and plan ahead

27. ACS Risk Assessment Matrix Easy to use Is a comprehensive look at a wide variety of hazards and their associated risk Results in a numerical value

31. Source: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/hierarchy

32. Minimize the risk of the hazards How do we control risk? Various techniques exist for reducing risk Start at the top and work your way down using the Hierarchy of Controls Not all will be effective for each experiment or situation

33. Hierarchy of Controls Elimination Most effective control Do not use the hazard! Not really practical in research much of the time… Substitution Sometimes possible (Ethidium Bromide vs SYBR Safe; PIRANHA solution vs KOH/ethanol, NoChromix, Nano-strip) Many times specific materials will be needed, and a substitute will be inadequate

34. Hierarchy of Controls Engineering Controls Isolate workers from the hazard While designing an experiment, engineering controls will often be the most effective way to control risk Have limitations based on the material used Are not always practical (field work?) Examples: Fume hood, biosafety cabinet, glovebox, interlocks, machine guards, etc.

35. Hierarchy of Controls Administrative Controls Focus on changing the behavior of people rather than isolating the hazard Requires you to plan ahead Examples: Training Policies - working alone, recapping needles, number of hours worked, food and drink consumption and storage, etc. Warning signs Housekeeping Equipment maintenance Restrict access/task Hygiene practices (proper glove removal, wash hands, do both before leaving the lab) Emergency preparedness (spill kits, emergency eyewash/shower, fire extinguisher) Waste disposal – don’t let waste accumulate if it is no longer needed Laboratory Safety Plan and Standard Operating Procedures (more on this later)

38. Hierarchy of Controls Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Garments or equipment designed to protect the person’s body Usually the least effective method and should be the last considered Consider the additional stress caused by PPE, and limitations it can cause (e.g. dexterity, heat stress) Should still absolutely be used in case something else fails

39. Hierarchy of Controls Examples: Eye/face protection - safety glasses, goggles, face shield Lab coats – Select based on the materials used (e.g. flame resistant for significant fire hazard labs) Respirators – Requires annual fit testing, training, and physical (including N95) – OSHA requirement

40. Hierarchy of Controls Gloves Should be chosen based on the materials in use No “universal” glove Consider breakthrough time (spraying gloves?) Effective for incidental splashes (change when this occurs) DRS has a chart to help select gloves, and a variety of resources (e.g. the manufacturer) exist

42. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) Term used by OSHA (these are required by OSHA and other regulatory agencies) – I prefer “Method” and “Method development” Set of instructions written to help individuals carry out a complex task SOPs should be written for all materials and procedures that pose a potential risk to the health and safety of lab personnel SOP should focus on the risk of hazards, and not the hazards alone There is no specific format, but templates are available to help in the development of SOPs Lab Safety Plan (which includes the SOPs) is the primary administrative control in the lab

43. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) Are SOPs needed for everything? Even simple tasks an undergrad can do? –YES However, make use of existing resources Countless SOPs exist, and are known to be safe Remember an SOP does not have a specific template, and can come in many forms Use whatever works for your experiment! Some have built in elements that might be helpful to you.

44. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) What are some existing resources I can use? Documents from the DRS library Protocols provided by the manufacturer (e.g. extraction kit protocols) Instrument or equipment manuals Textbooks/published works/known to be safe procedures (e.g. Vogel’s Textbook of Practical Organic Chemistry) Often, incorporating existing resources will prevent the need to write one from scratch No need to reinvent the wheel. If it exists in a way that covers safety information, there is no need to transcribe it into a specific form.

45. Prepare for Emergencies Part of your SOP and risk assessment should cover what to do in case of an emergency (What is the worst thing that can happen?) Identify potential spill clean up materials Absorbent materials Mercury spill kit Bleach for biological material spills Acid/Base neutralizers Other specialized materials – know what you are working with Correct fire extinguishers. Class D needed? Quench method?

46. Prepare for Emergencies Other issues to consider in the lab Flood Are you prepared to handle a flood? Consider flooding that is the result of severe weather or other factors. Burst pipes, sprinkler system activating in the lab above you, backed up sinks, etc. Fire Are you prepared to handle a fire? Do you know evacuation and assembly points? BEAP plan/Emergency Response Guide Seismic activity Not likely in Illinois, but they have occurred Storage of materials and equipment

47. Prepare for Emergencies Other issues to consider in the lab Loss of Power What sort of impact will this have on your operations? Are you prepared to handle it? Work being done in a fume hood? Unable to control heat? Will this damage equipment? Will this impact samples in long term storage (e.g. -80 ⁰C freezers)? Preplanning for loss of power Generator power - Does your building have a generator? Does it allow all operations to continue? What are the limits? Alternative storage methods for samples? Dry ice?

48. Prepare for Emergencies Other issues to consider in the lab Loss of Power (continued) Loss of data Is your data backed up? External storage, network drive, etc. Can the data be backed up automatically? Power surges Implement a surge protector to protect your equipment Other scenarios Snow storm, building emergencies, etc. Many other scenarios might exist depending on the lab. Make sure to consider everything that could be impacted by an out of the ordinary event.

49. Waste Disposal/Cleanup Label all waste containers Potential waste incompatibilities? Please don’t mix nitric acid waste with ethanol… Is the waste container in good condition? Is the waste compatible with the container? Just because it is now waste does not mean the hazards have gone away

50. Creating an SOP and performing a risk assessment Let’s walk through a simple undergrad experiment and perform a risk assessment Esterification of salicylic acid to acetylsalicylic acid