Respiratory Protection

1. Respiratory Protection

2. RESPIRATOR PROGRAM • Requires a written program with worksite-specific procedures when respirators are needed. • Must be updated, as needed • A program administrator is required for the entire college. • College must provide respirators, training, and medical evaluations at no cost to employees.

3. Selection Medical Evaluation Respirator Use Maintenance and Care Fit Testing Breathing-Air Quality and Use Training Program Evaluation RESPIRATOR PROGRAM ELEMENTS

4. WHERE RESPIRATORS ARE USED BUT NOT REQUIRED • If respirators will not create a hazard, and if requested, OCC may furnish respirators. • If approved, employees may wear their own, but must follow program requirements. • Voluntary use of filtering facepieces (face masks) does not have to be included in the written program.

5. PERMISSIBLE PRACTICES • Engineering Controls (enclosures, confinement of operations, ventilation, use of less toxic materials) are primary means to control hazards. • When effective engineering controls are not available, respirators will be used. • Respirators will be applicable to and suitable for the purpose intended. • Employer will be responsible for maintaining the program .

6. SELECTION OF RESPIRATORS • College will select and provide an appropriate respirator based on the respiratory hazards to which the worker is exposed, workplace factors, and user factors that affect respirator performance and reliability. • Respirators will be selected from a sufficient number of models and sizes to ensure correct fit and comfort.

7. RESRIRATOR PROTECTION TRAINING • Employees that use respirators must be trained and demonstrate skill or knowledge of at least: • Why it is necessary, and how improper use and care can compromise its effectiveness • It’s limitations and capabilities • How to put on, remove, use, and inspect • How to maintain and store • General requirements of this standard

8. RESRIRATOR PROTECTION TRAINING • Training must be provided prior to use. • Retraining required annually, and when: • Prior training becomes obsolete • Employee’s skill or knowledge is inadequate • Other situations arise in which retraining appears necessary

9. EMPLOYEE EXPOSURE • Regulatory Definition: Exposure to a concentration of an airborne contaminant that would occur if the employee were not using respiratory protection.

10. TWO BASIC TYPES OF RESPIRATORS • Air Purifying - Removes contaminants before they reach the breathing zone. • Atmosphere Supplying - Provides fresh air from an external source.

11. AIR PURIFYING • May be particulate removing • Vapor and gas removing • A combination of the two • Uses a replaceable cartridge or canister

12. AIR PURIFYINGUSE LIMITATIONS • Does not supply oxygen, therefore there is only as much oxygen available to breath as is in the ambient air • Contaminant must be known and cannot exceed facepiece limitations • Contaminants are not IDLH • Always treat oxygen-deficient air as IDLH

13. ATMOSPHERE SUPPLYING • Type 1 - Airline Respirator. Air is pumped to the user from outside. • Type 2 - Self Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA).

14. AIRLINE RESPIRATOR • Has a pressure demand nozzle that allows user to control air flow • Use Grade D breathing air • May be used with a hood or helmet to supply continuous air • Tight fitting • Hose limited to 300 feet • Some mobility restriction

15. SELF-CONTAINED BREATHING APPARATUS • Breathing air provided from pressurized tanks • Provides highest level of protection and mobility • Commonly used in rescue or emergency situations • Limited to air in tanks (30 or 60 minutes) • Positive pressure provides protection for both oxygen deficient and IDLH atmospheres

16. RESPIRATOR SELECTION • Must fit the wearer and be comfortable • Must be the type which best controls the hazards to be faced • Atmospheric hazard evaluation determines which one to wear • Never substitute, or take the chance that a different one will provide adequate protection

17. WRITTEN RESPIRATORY PROTECTION PLAN • Entire program to be assigned to a trained and competent person • Manager of Environmental Health and Safety • Describes in detail the hazard evaluation process • Contains SOPs for respirator selection, use, and maintenance

18. WRITTEN RESPIRATORY PROTECTION PLAN • Contains results of analysis of atmospheric contaminants • Physical and chemical properties • Adverse health effects • Warning properties • Permissible Exposure Limits (PELs) • Other accepted exposure limits

19. WRITTEN RESPIRATORY PROTECTION PLAN • Additional plan criteria • Results of workplace atmospheric testing • Nature of the work • Activities that are to be performed • Time expected to complete the task • Written plan to be made available to all involved employees

20. FIT TESTING • Before an employee uses any respirator with a negative or positive pressure tight-fitting facepiece, the employee must be fit tested with the same make, model, style, and size of respirator that will be used. • Must be administered using an OSHA-accepted protocol such as that contained in Appendix A of the OCC Respiratory Protection Program.

21. FIT TESTING • Respirators rely on face-to-mask seal • Fit testing determines which device will best fit and seal • Stubble, beard, hairlines, glasses, and goggles will negatively affect fit • Corrective lenses may be mounted inside the facepiece

22. FIT TEST PROCEDURES • Fit testing should be conducted annually. • More often, if facial features change or a different respirator is to be used. • Users of tight-fitting respirators must perform a seal test each time they are used.

23. TYPES OF FIT TESTING • Qualitative (QLFT) - challenge agent, vapor, or aerosol released • Fit is inadequate if a presence of the agent is detected (irritation, taste, or odor) • Quantitative (QNFT) - measures actual level of agent both inside and outside the respirator

24. FIT FACTOR • A quantitative estimate of the fit of a particular respirator to a specific individual, and estimates the ratio of: • Concentration of a substance in ambient air versus the concentration inside the respirator when worn

25. FILTERS • A component used in respirators to remove solid or liquid particles, aerosols, and/or fumes from inspired air. • Also called an air purifying element.

26. HEPA FILTERS • High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) • Removes 99.97% of particles that are 0.3 micrometers, or greater, in diameter. • Color coded Purple.

27. CANISTER / CARTRIDGE • A container with a filter, sorbent (catalyst), or combination of these items, which removes specific contaminants from the air passed through the container. • All cartridges must be NIOSH/MSHA approved and color coded.

28. SERVICE LIFE • The period of time that a respirator, filter, adsorbant, or other respiratory equipment provides adequate protection to the wearer.

29. END OF SERVICE LIFE INDICATOR (ESLI) • A system that warns the user of the approach of the end of adequate respiratory protection. (i.e., The adsorbant is approaching saturation or is no longer providing protection)

30. NEGATIVE PRESSURERESPIRATOR • A respirator in which the air pressure inside the facepiece is negative during inhalation with respect to the ambient air pressure outside the respirator.

31. FILTERING FACEPIECE(Dust Mask) • A negative pressure particulate respirator with a filter as an integral part of the facepiece, or with the entire facepiece composed of the filtering medium.

32. POSITIVE PRESSURERESPIRATOR • A respirator in which the pressure inside the respiratory inlet covering exceeds the ambient air pressure outside the respirator.

33. POWERED AIR-PURIFYINGRESPIRATOR (PAPR) • An air purifying respirator that uses a blower to force ambient air through air-purifying elements to the inlet covering.

34. ATMOSPHERE-SUPPLYINGRESPIRATOR • A respirator that supplies the user with breathing air from a source independent of the ambient atmosphere. • Includes Supplied-Air Respirators (SARs) and Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) units.

35. ATMOSPHERE-SUPPLYINGRESPIRATORS • Continuous Flow: provides a continuous flow of breathing air to the respiratory inlet covering • Pressure Demand: admits air to the facepiece when the positive pressure inside the facepiece is reduced by inhalation

36. SUPPLIED AIR RESPIRATOR (SAR) • An atmosphere-supplying respirator for which the source of breathing air is not carried by the user. • Also called an airline respirator.

37. SELF-CONTAINED BREATHING APPARATUS (SCBA) • An atmosphere-supplying respirator for which the breathing air is designed to be carried by the user.

38. ESCAPE ONLY RESPIRATOR • A respirator designed and intended to be used only for emergency exit.

39. PUTTING THE RESPIRATOR ON (DONNING) • Donning the Respirator: • Donning procedures may vary from respirator to respirator. • Always follow the manufacturer’s recommended procedures for putting on a respirator. • In general: • Place facepiece over mouth and nose • Pull straps over head, or attach behind head, as appropriate • Tighten straps from bottom to top

40. POSITIVE PRESSURE SEAL TEST • Performed each time respirator is put on • Block off exhalation valve with palm. • Blow outward gently. • A good fit results in the pressure holding and no leaks found.

41. NEGATIVE PRESSURE SEAL TEST • Performed each time a respirator is put on • Place palms over the inhalation inlets, or squeeze the breathing tube. • Inhale gently. Facepiece should collapse slightly. • Hold breath for about ten seconds. • Good test indicated by pressure holding and no leaks found.

42. TAKING THE RESPIRATOR OFF (DOFFING) • Doffing the Respirator • Procedures may vary from respirator to respirator • Always follow the manufacturer’s recommended procedures for removing a respirator • In general: • While holding the facepiece, loosen the straps from top to bottom • Pull the straps over the head and in front of the facepiece, or detach buckles, depending upon the design • Remove the respirator

43. CONTINUING RESPIRATOR EFFECTIVENESS • Maintain constant surveillance of respirator effectiveness. • Employees must leave the respirator use area: • To wash face or facepiece • If a “breakthrough” is detected (see below) • There is a change in breathing resistance • There is leakage of the facepiece • To replace respirator, filter, cartridge, or canister • Since the respirator is designed to prevent many chemicals from reaching the wearer, any unusual odors detected in the mask should be treated as a breakthrough.

44. RESPIRATOR MAINTENANCE • Step 1 – Inspection • Inspect before and after each use • Step 2 – Cleaning / Decontamination • Clean/decontaminate after each use or when respirator becomes contaminated/dirty • Step 3 – Storage • Store in sealed container after each use

45. STEP 1 - INSPECTION Check for: • Holes in the filters • Loss of elasticity or tears in headstraps and hoses • Broken or loose connectors and hoses • Cracked or scratched facepieces • Detergent residue • Dirt in valves • General cleanliness

46. STEP 2 - CLEANING / DECONTAMINATION • Explicitly follow manufacturers directions. • If worn by only one person, clean and disinfect periodically. • If possible to be worn by more than one person, clean and disinfect after each use.

47. STEP 3 - STORAGE • Must be protected from dust, sunlight, heat, cold, moisture, and chemicals • Facepiece should be stored in an individual plastic bag • Store masks with valves and breathing tubes in a natural, undistorted position • Store cartridges/canisters in air-tight plastic bags, as the adsorbent material within them will continue to adsorb airborne chemicals even when not being used.

48. BREATHING AIR QUALITY • Compressed breathing air must meet at least the requirements for Grade D breathing air. • Systems supplying breathing air must be equipped with appropriate in-line air purifying sorbent beds and filters, and maintained per manufacturer’s instructions.

49. CLASSES OF FILTERS • Three levels of filter efficiency (95%, 99%, and 99.97%). • Three levels of filter resistance to efficiency degradation (labeled N, R, and P). • Total of nine classes of filters.

50. MEDICAL EVALUATIONPROCEDURES • Provide medical evaluation before fit testing and respirator use. • Licensed Health Care Provider (LHCP) may use questionnaire (Sections 1 and 2, Part A of Appendix C) and/or examination. • Follow-up is required for any positive response to questions 1-8 in Section 2, Part A of Appendix C, or demonstrates the need during examination.