You can’t use bleach on everything in your laboratory. Cleaning and disinfecting the myriad of surfaces, tools, and equipment in your lab requires a variety of cleaners, soaps, and disinfectants. While one cleaner might be good for killing off acid-fast bacteria, it might damage or corrode your...
Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHF), such as Ebola virus disease and Marburg virus disease, represent an ongoing threat even if their chance of occurrence on U.S. soil may seem low. These highly infectious diseases not only carry a high mortality rate but also present unique challenges for hospital...
As we leave 2024 behind us, laboratory safety officers and staff should look ahead to the challenges and promises 2025 will bring. Some lab safety issues will remain evergreen, such as sharps safety and personal protective equipment (PPE) compliance. Meanwhile, things like emerging diseases,...
The year draws to a close, and it’s time for laboratory safety workers to look back at all the laboratory safety stories and topics we’ve covered this year. After all, many lab safety issues from 2024 will cross over with us into 2025.
A report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found that 24 laboratory workers were infected with a strain of Salmonella typhimurium, an enteric pathogen. The infections were reported in 16 states across the country. Of those infected, six were hospitalized with symptoms such as...
The United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Combined Heat and Power program is an energy solution for hospitals, providing efficient and continuous power that safeguards critical life support systems during grid outages. With the increasing frequency of severe weather events in the U.S...
Stress is a natural response that everyone deals with, but being able to manage it during a laboratory emergency can make all the difference in how things turn out. It’s not wrong to feel stress under pressure, and there are ways to cope with your stress response before, during, and after a...
A fire can double in size every 30 seconds, and in a laboratory crammed full of people, chemicals, biological materials, and expensive equipment, that exponential growth can quickly lead to disastrous results. The people in your lab need to know what to do if a fire breaks out just as much as...
Artificial intelligence is increasingly impacting healthcare safety and compliance, offering tools for improving patient care and operational efficiency. Troy Lair, PhD, principal consultant of Elite Accreditation Consultants, caught up with Medical Environment Update for a Q&A on how AI is...
