Importance of Bio Risk Management in Institutions and Universities

1. Importance of Bio Risk Management in Institutions and Universities Every university and institution present its own unique combination of worst case scenario exposures, particularly in research labs and in-house biomedical and microbiology facilities. Proper bio security risk assessment is key to determining the various risk factors present in these learning environments. These factors include, but are not limited to the educational programs the institution offers, the research conducted within their laboratory premises, the number as well as the type of potentially hazardous agents handed, laboratory sizes, and the number of people that can be exposed to bio safety risks. Below are common university exposures that require the attention of bio security risk assessment agencies: Exposures associated with university research laboratories. Great possibilities of serious and often catastrophic loss constantly loom over research laboratories, especially on campuses that operate medical teaching schools, as well as technological institutes and universities that offer different scientific research degrees. Schools that conduct research operations that involve chemical, biological, or nuclear agents risk their population’s exposure to these bio risks. Bio security risk assessment helps determine the level of threat that students, faculty, as well as the general public face when these risks are not adequately controlled and provide bio risk management solutions that will ensure mitigation of such threats. Exposures associated with university biomedical and microbiology facilities. Many universities host basic biology laboratories for basic instruction. Others, however operate highly specialized laboratories reserved for the study of organisms and agents of varying levels of hazard potential. Having a comprehensive understanding of the different risks that exist around these kinds of facilities is critical so that risk managers can ensure safety not only within their laboratories, but also within the campus and its immediate surroundings. Bio security risk assessment is a critical step toward the identification of these risk levels and the containment and operational procedures they require to ensure safety.