CLINICAL LAB SCIENEC

110
ESSENTIALS OF CLINICAL LABORATORY SCIENCE
employees, patients, and even visitors. There are legal ramifications that may
impact a facility where injuries occur due to negligence and to commonplace
occurrences that are not a result of carelessness or neglect by the employees of
the health care facility but are accidents. Therefore, policies and procedures must
be adopted and carried out to avoid as many of these occurrences as possible.
In addition to policies and procedures for each facility, there are local, state,
and federal laws where certain practices are mandated, in an effort to circumvent
injuries and deaths due to conditions where specific policies and procedures will
prevent many accidents. Safety Committees and Exposure Control Committees
(including Infection Control Committees) are organized to initiate and implement
policies and procedures designed to protect the health of all categories of
personnel who might be associated with the health care facility.
Physical hazards must be addressed by identifying them and, in some cases,
by containing them in specially designed cabinets or areas where little or no
harm may be present. Engineered controls to be used to prevent fire and the
release of chemicals or pathogens are two important components of a safety
program. In addition, a “right to know” law makes available Material Safety
Data Sheets (MSDSs) for employees to consult to know how to avoid danger or
how to treat oneself in a case of exposure. Appropriate signs for escape routes,
and warning signs for flammable and toxic chemicals and for electrical hazards
should be used.
Disposal of broken glass and sharp items must be done in a proper and safe
manner. Specially trained personnel should have the knowledge to safely handle
these materials. Biohazardous materials must be properly collected, isolated
from patients, employees, and visitors, and properly packaged for pick-up and
transport to a commercial waste disposal operation by trained personnel. Training
is mandatory based on the tasks performed by each health care employee and
is done on at least an annual basis and when job duties change. Documentation
of this training is maintained for a lengthy period of time for those who have
undergone the training.
Review Questions
1. What is the purpose of a Safety Committee?
2. Who is responsible for safety and for reporting hazards?
3. What is the main purpose for reporting and following up on accidents,
including injuries and exposure to toxic and biohazardous materials?
4. When should safety training be provided for employees, and who is responsible
for providing this training?
5. In your own thinking, what is the number one reason that accidents occur?
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