Safety Highlights

Abstract

Safety signage is an important part of a chemical laboratory. At the University of Strathclyde, Scotland, a researcher had been carrying out work with β-lactam compounds similar to penicillin and, as this compound class represents well-known allergens, signs were placed on entrances to the laboratory and adjoining corridor to warn visitors of the hazard about the ongoing use of potent allergens in the area. 1,2 When the research was successfully concluded, the associated chemicals were safely disposed of through collaboration with trained environmental health and safety (EH&S) technical staff. However, the hazard warning signs were not taken down at the same time. A maintenance worker was later carrying out routine safety checks of eyewash stations in the chemistry building wherein the β-lactam work had been conducted. The worker had a penicillin allergy, so upon seeing the warning signs, decided not to enter the corridor to carry out the essential eyewash checks needed for that particular laboratory. Fortunately, the maintenance worker reported that they could not enter the floor to the departmental safety manager. It was then promptly identified that the signs were no longer relevant and could be safely removed from view. The eyewash checks were carried out. Had the maintenance worker not reported the presence of the allergy warning posters, the eyewash station could have gone unchecked, leading to potentially severe consequences in an emergency situation in which the eyewash was needed. This incident highlights the importance of managing safety considerations during a period of operational change in research. 3 Risks often occur from a lack of displaying appropriate hazard warnings. In this case, it was the out-of-date signage not removed that that led to a near miss. Jack B. Washington and Chunhui Yan ■ LABORATORY RADIATION ACCIDENT AND LASTING SKIN EXPOSURE TO MOLYBDENUM-99 Radioactive chemicals carry invisible safety concerns through their decay mechanisms. At a facility run by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), a quality control analyst dropped a vial containing a solution of high-activity 99 Mo inside a fume cupboard. 4 Molybdenum-99, with a half-life via beta-decay of approximately two days, 5 is a common source of a technetium radioisotope used in diagnostic medicine (99m Tc). 6,7 A vial containing a solution of 99 Mo within the fume cabinet was dropped while decapping the crimped seal on the vial, contaminating the inside surfaces of the fume cabinet and the analyst's doubled gloves. The analyst recovered the dropped vial from the floor of the fume cabinet and placed it in an allocated lead pot and then monitored their doubled gloves for contamination. Contamination was detected on both the inner and outer gloves. Thus, both pairs of gloves were removed and discarded in the nearby shielded waste bin. After about 30 minutes of continuous washing with soap and decontamination solution, the radiation levels on the analyst's hands were still high. For the following days, contamination on the skin was measured and recorded and periodic washing continued. By one week later, no contamination could be detected. Over the longer term, the radiochemical spillage caused skin reddening, blistering, and peeling that would take months to heal, and there is a risk of long-term effects. A subsequent investigation by the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) found, among other things, that (i) practices for reporting low significance events, near misses, and deviations from expected practice were not implemented effectively, (ii) operational level worker knowledge of the level of risk associated with their work or related work was found to be incomplete, (iii) the hazard associated with the task was significantly underestimated by ANSTO, and (iv) the procedures and instructions in use in the ANSTO Health quality control laboratory did not consider the contribution of human factors to the variability in practices, performance, and reaction of workers to unusual events. 8,9 Peter Wilkinson Published: May 5, 2020 Highlight pubs.acs.org/acschas