Basic Safety Rules
BASIC SAFETY RULES FOR THE HETZEL LABORATORY (PC2)
Physical containment level 2 (PC2) laboratories handle organisms of risk group 2 and regulations governing these facilities state that nothing should be taken into or out of the laboratory. This is difficult in an undergraduate teaching setting where notes need to be taken in and out, but everything else will be supplied including writing materials.
General rules:
1. All personal items must be left in the lockers in the foyer of the laboratory on level 4 of the Hetzel building. Nothing except plastic covered laboratory books and your safety glasses are to be taken into the laboratory.
2. A suitable laboratory gown must be worn at all times. Disposable gowns will be issued to all students in undergraduate classes. These will be retained for the relevant teaching period and stored in a plastic ziplock bag in the laboratory. Label with your name. If the coat becomes contaminated or damaged inform the demonstrators who will replace it.
3. Enclosed footwear is to be worn at all times (no thongs, slides, crocs or sandals).
4. No smoking, eating or drinking is allowed in the laboratory.
5. Long hair should be secured so as not to flick into Bunsen burners.
6. Do not put pens or any other object in your mouth or in or near your eyes. NEVER pipette by mouth.
7. Gloves should be worn only when handling material of human origin (e.g. urine and faeces specimens) or if you have cuts or other lesions on your hands. Open wounds should be covered with a waterproof dressing. You do not need to wear gloves for handling routine laboratory derived cultures BUT handle every culture and specimen as if it contained pathogenic material i.e. handle with care.
8. In the event of spills of any material, infectious or otherwise, notify a demonstrator immediately.
9. Safety glasses must be worn during all practical sessions.
10. Bunsen Burners:
Lighting the Bunsen Burner video
Bunsen Burners:
- must only be lit when about to be used
- must be extinguished when not in use
- must only be lit with a lighter and not matches or other burners
- must always be placed on a heat resistant mat
- the mat must be on the front of the bench away from the gas outlets and other equipment and not under the shelf.
- do not place hot loops on the plastic gas lines – place loops upright in a test tube rack to cool
- ensure the gas line is adequately attached to the outlet
- do not touch a burner while lit or until it has cooled
- do not operate a burner near beakers of alcohol or acetone
- do not attempt to light a bunsen wearing gloves.
11. Staining
- keep all stain bottles on the stain trays
- turn off all adjacent Bunsen burners while staining
- use forceps for handling slides – do not use your fingers
- avoid getting stains on your hands
- flush waste reagents out of the sink with adequate running water immediately after use
12. Keep your work area tidy and free of paper rubbish (tissues, blotting paper from staining, pipette bags etc.).
13. Place all used microscope slides and disposable glass pipettes in the sharps bins immediately after use. Stained slides may harbour live bacteria.
14. Dispose of all contaminated glassware and equipment into suitable containers on the discard trolley. Do not leave on benches and do not discard cultures down sinks.
15. Avoid the production of aerosols from loops and pipettes. Use closures on all centrifuge tubes and while mixing tube contents on vortexes.
16. Read and familiarise yourself with the safety data sheets (SDSs) and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for any chemicals used in your practicals and treat all chemicals accordingly including wearing of safety glasses and gloves where indicated.
17. Familiarise yourself with the locations of the fire blankets in the laboratory.
18. In the event of a fire in the building the alarm will sound repeatedly and you will be told to evacuate immediately. Leave the laboratory without delay, do not stop to gather personal possessions or to wash your hands. Walk out of the laboratory and exit via the southern staircase to level 2. Demonstrators will take a container of aquium gel for you to use when you reach the assembly point. You will be advised of the assembly point as you leave the laboratory.
19. In the event of any injury, notify a demonstrator immediately.
20. Listen to and follow any instructions given by the demonstrators.
21. WASH YOUR HANDS BEFORE LEAVING THE LABORATORY AND AT OTHER INTERVALS DURING THE PRACTICAL SESSION WHERE NECESSARY. Also before leaving, spray your benches with ethanol and wipe your safety glasses and books with an alcohol based hand wipe.
SAFETY DATA SHEETS (SDSs)
A safety data sheet or SDS is a form containing data regarding the properties of a particular substance. An important component of workplace safety, it is intended to provide workers and emergency personnel with procedures for handling or working with that substance in a safe manner, and includes information such as physical data (melting point, boiling point, flash point, etc.), toxicity, health effects, first aid, reactivity, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill handling procedures. SDS information may include instructions for the safe use and potential hazards associated with a certain chemical.
All SDSs for chemicals used in practicals can be found in the folder on the front bench of the laboratory adjacent to the fume hood.
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES
All equipment used in the laboratory has a written list of instructions, known as a standard operating procedure (SOP), associated with it. These can be found in a folder next to the equipment. They should be consulted before using any equipment for the first time. It is good laboratory practice to follow SOPs at all times, because otherwise, apart from safety issues, your results may be compromised if the equipment is not used correctly.