1
Principles of Health and Safety and Good Laboratory Practice

Elaine Armstrong

Health & Safety Services, Compliance & Risk, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK

1.1 Introduction

Scientific research, by definition, involves carrying out novel work to further scientific knowledge and, in pursuit of this activity, new techniques are developed and applied. The object of this chapter is to discuss a set of principles and guidelines that, when followed, will provide a safe and healthy environment for researchers, which will, in turn, facilitate and promote good science.

Chemical and biological laboratories are potentially very hazardous places in which to work. In recent years there have been a number of very serious accidents in academic laboratories with tragic and sometimes fatal consequences for those involved. These include fatalities in 2009 when a researcher died of extensive burns due to contact with a pyrophoric chemical [1] and in 2011 when a researcher was asphyxiated in an oxygen depleted atmosphere caused by evaporation of liquid nitrogen into a non-ventilated space [2]. Serious injuries were caused to a graduate student in 2010 who was grinding energetic material that exploded [3] and a researcher lost an arm when a pressure vessel exploded in 2016 [4].

The risk of accidents and injury can be significantly reduced by researchers being aware of any potential hazards and working with care and attention to detail. Prior to commencing any work activity, it is very important, and time well spent, for researchers to familiarise themselves with all available information about the materials, equipment and processes that they will be using during the course of their work. The safety of everyone in the laboratory is largely determined by each individual's work practices.

1.2 Good Laboratory Practice

Good Laboratory Practice, or , is a series of behaviours that is designed to prevent accidents, many of which will be described in the specific procedures developed by administrators or principal investigators for use in their laboratories. However, some general guidelines are given below:

• Do not eat, drink, smoke or apply cosmetics in the laboratory.
• Wash and dry hands before leaving the laboratory.
• Wear shoes with a closed toe - no sandals or flip flops.
• Wear personal protective equipment () that is required by the relevant risk assessment, properly (safety spectacles worn on top of the head do a poor job protecting eyes from chemical splashes).
• Cover any broken skin with suitable dressings.
• Keep benches and fume cupboards clear of unnecessary equipment, which leaves room for carrying out the work and will minimise the effect of any accidents.
• Ensure that all chemicals are properly labelled with the name of the chemical and any hazard information and, for samples, the owner's name, date of preparation and quantity.
• Replace lids and stoppers.
• Return chemicals to their dedicated storage areas after use.
• Check chemical stock and equipment that is not in regular use periodically to ensure it is in good condition and specific storage conditions are being met (e.g. certain chemicals should not be allowed to 'dry out').
• Store chemicals safely in appropriate storage spaces.
• When carrying large bottles of solvent, always use suitable carriers and do not lift large bottles solely by the neck.
• Keep substances that are incompatible with each other apart and in separate storage spaces, and label them clearly.
• Comply with local restrictions on the amount of highly flammable and flammable materials (which includes waste).
• If equipment becomes faulty, take it out of service, label it and report it to someone who will arrange for its repair.
• Use all equipment in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
• Dispose of all out of date and/or unwanted chemicals and equipment safely, on a timely basis and according to local procedures.
• Inspect any glassware before use and do not use any that is broken, chipped or cracked, as this might either directly cause injury to the researcher or fail catastrophically in use.
• Follow any local rules and guidance about working alone.
• Follow any local rules and guidance about working out of hours.

In addition to using GLP, there is a lot of other information available to assist researchers in how to work safely. Much of this will be detailed in the local arrangements for the facility (including standard operating procedures, existing risk assessments, laboratory scripts), safety data sheets (s) for chemicals, instructions for the use of kits in microbiology, user manuals for equipment, etc., and other texts [5,6].

1.3 Risk Assessment

Risk assessment is a tool used to develop ways of working to minimise the risk of causing harm to people and damaging facilities. Carrying out a risk assessment is a fundamental requirement in most health and safety regulations [7-12]. However, this requirement can result in a number of separate assessments being carried out for different parts of the same process, when actually all the requirements could be captured in a single 'holistic' risk assessment. Risk assessments must be carried out by 'competent' people. (Competent people are those who have sufficient knowledge, ability, training and experience in their field to be able to advise on the safest way to carry out the task that is being assessed.) Principal investigators, laboratory supervisors as well as safety advisors and officers should be able to assist with the process.

• It is pertinent here to differentiate between hazard and risk.
• A hazard is something that has the potential to cause harm.
• A risk is the probability or likelihood of a hazard causing harm.

Before starting work, it is necessary for the people involved to be able to:

• Recognise and identify any hazards associated with the work - these hazards can be associated with materials, equipment, the environment in which it is being done and the people carrying it out - see Table 1.1 for examples of common hazards in laboratories.
• Assess the risks to people posed by the hazards. This includes identifying who could be harmed, how they may be harmed and how severe the harm could be. The hazards that could cause the most severe harm and those that could cause harm to the highest number of people are the ones that must be prioritised when thinking about ways to prevent the harm occurring.
• Reduce and mitigate the risks by adopting ways of working that prevent the hazards coming into contact with people. There is a standard hierarchy of ways to reduce and control hazards, which is shown in Figure 1.1. The most effective way of controlling a hazard is to eliminate it altogether, which is often quite difficult, but must be considered first.
  1. Substitution could involve replacing a substance in one form with the same substance in a less hazardous form (e.g. replacing a very dusty powder used to make a solution, to obtaining the solution already made) or substitution of one chemical with another. The overall level of hazard does need to be assessed carefully as a very toxic chemical could be substituted by a less toxic one that presents a higher level of physical risk - e.g. is more highly flammable.
  2. Engineering controls are commonly used to isolate people from the hazard. This type of control includes totally enclosing a process, e.g. in a glove box or Class 3 microbiological safety cabinet, use of interlocks that automatically switch off lasers or X-rays when a portal is open or providing local exhaust ventilation (fume cupboards, capture hoods situated over equipment, etc.).
  3. Administrative controls depend on people acting in a certain way and working to standard operating procedures and risk assessments. Personnel should also have had sufficient instruction, information, training and supervision to carry out the work safely.
  4. Personal protective equipment, or PPE, is the lowest level of control. PPE has a vital role in protecting researchers from hazards, but it does have some drawbacks, which include failing in a dangerous situation and only protecting the person wearing it. It is only effective if it is worn properly, it fits and is correctly specified. A management system for PPE is required to ensure that the correct equipment is specified and procured and people are trained in its use. If there are several items needed in combination, they must be compatible with each other and not increase the overall danger. It must fit the person for whom it was procured. Workers need to be taught how to use the equipment and what limitations it has (e.g. some laboratory safety spectacles are not manufactured to provide protection against ultraviolet light), how to put the equipment on and, importantly, how to take off contaminated equipment safely. Arrangements are needed for cleaning, storage, inspection, repair, replacement and the eventual safe disposal of the PPE. If respiratory equipment is needed, then face fit testing must be carried out.
• Prepare for emergencies. This is to provide guidance, before it might be needed, about how to deal with the consequences of something going wrong. This...