For more information about current COVID-19 public health guidelines, please visit the UChicago Forward website.
Upholding Public Health Requirements
Use the UCAIR online form to anonymously report concerns about compliance with COVID-19 health requirements.
Research Safety Training
To satisfy social distancing efforts, all training for the following are accessible online either via live Zoom training or a webinar. Click here to sign up.
Radiation Safety
Chemical Hygiene Plan (Lab Safety)
Comprehensive Biosafety
IATA Shipping Dangerous Goods
Please note, you do not need to have an EHSA account to take training, but when trying to access EHSA without an account, you will be rejected. Please contact the EHSA administrator to request access.
HAZWOPER Certification
(Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response)
ORS offers a HAZWOPER Certification course specifically for work at UChicago. There are 2 courses available:
8-hour refresher for those who already have a certification (must show proof).
We are excitedly expanding our program! Members from the ORS team have been very busy preparing our very own laboratory space to use in the near future. The following activities are just a few examples of what we plan to do:
Relevant location to conduct in-person or Zoom training;
Mock laboratory for training purposes;
One-on-one or small group demonstrations:
proper set up and use of a biological safety cabinet (BSC);
proper set up and use of a fume hood;
donning and doffing of personal protective equipment (PPE);
chemical segregation and storage;
transferring solvents
hazardous material spill clean-up;
hazardous waste handling;
chemical storage;
laser eyewear storage, laser alignment, Class 3b and Class 3 laser safety
decontamination of radioactive material;
radiation survey meters
and more!
Applied biosafety research for the purpose of streamlining biological safety practices;
Prepare training videos for lab-related activities described above.
Chemical Safety Blog
RAMP Up Continued:
R = Recognize Hazards
A = Assess the Risks of Hazards
M = Minimize the Risks of Hazards
P = Prepare for Emergencies
In our last edition of Newsletter, we introduced "RAMP up for Safety." In this edition we will discuss : A = Assess the Risks of Hazards.
Accessing risk is one of the most difficult steps of the RAMP up method. Because researchers will have to consider both subjective and objective components of the hazards. Please seek information from reliable sources such as safety professionals, experienced researchers, and PIs. Website for example PubChem and CAMEO Chemiclas are also useful/alternative sources to find additional data about chemical and physical hazard of the chemical and procedure.
Remember! Risk should be assessed/evaluated during the experimental planning phase prior to work. Use the following Risk Matrix Table to assess the risk of the hazards. Risk is greatest where severity of consequence great and there is a high probability that an unwanted incident can occur.
Next Chemical Safety TIP will be on M - Minimize Risks of Hazards, stay tuned!
Biological Safety Blog
Hand Washing Luxury in the Malamy Lab
Research Technician and Lab Safety Contact for the Malamy Lab Safety Contact, Elizabeth Baldo, was encouraging handwashing well before COVID-19. She noticed that her hands were drying out from frequent handwashing, so her mom started giving her soaps that have nourishing vitamin E with softening shea extract & aloe that will not only keep hands clean, but also protect them from drying out. She now has an extensive variety of soaps and switches them out to match the season or room theme. Washing hands in the Malamy lab (and the 5th floor restroom in GCIS) has become a fun treat! Kudos to Betsy and her mom for encouraging handwashing by making it fun and luxurious!!
What can you do in your lab to encourage safe practices?
According to OSHA:
Hand hygiene is the first line of defense and hand washing is generally considered the single most important procedure for preventing the spread of nosocomial infection. Hand washing is to be used in conjunction with Standard Precautions.
Hands should be cleaned:
· Upon completion of required tasks and before leaving the laboratory
· Immediately after removal of gloves or other personal protective equipment
· Upon contact or when there is visible contamination with blood or other potentially infectious material
· Before and after patient contact
· Before eating, drinking, smoking, applying cosmetics, or handling contact lenses
· Before and after using the bathroom
· Before any activities in which hand contact is made with mucous membranes, the eyes, or breaks in the skin (eg, cuts, abrasions, wounds).
Proper hand-washing techniques:
1. Wet hands with water.
2. Apply enough soap to cover all surfaces.
3. Thoroughly wash all parts of hands and fingers up to the wrists, rubbing hands together for at least 20 seconds.
4. Rinse hands with water and dry thoroughly with paper towels.
5. Use paper towels to turn off faucet before discarding the towels in the waste receptacle.
Radiation Safety Presents: Laser Faire
(Laser Safety Blog)
Laser NBH -
The radiation emitted from a laser can be dangerous, but it isn’t the only hazard associated with these devices!
Lasers are used all around us and are present in many everyday items such as printers, Blu-ray players, barcode scanners, and light show displays. We have all been told not to direct a laser beam towards a person or a highly reflective surface because many lasers can cause irreversible eye damage in a fraction of a second. Did you know that the laser radiation is not the only hazard associated with laser systems?
Fire hazards, laser-generated-airborne-contaminants (LGACs), electrocution, and compressed gasses some of the other hazards associated with many laser systems used here at the University of Chicago. These auxiliary hazards have the very clever name of, “Non-beam hazards.” A fire is possible when high powered lasers irradiate a combustible material, and the risk is even greater in oxygen-rich environments. When a laser beam is incident upon a material, depending on the energy deposited, different reactions can occur, and different target materials may result in the release of dangerous gases such as benzene from laser interactions with PVC. The internal components of a laser may present an electric shock hazard and exposures can occur anytime protective housing panels are removed such as during maintenance activities. There have even been documented fatalities due to electrocution from laser system components.
While lasers are useful for highlighting items in a presentation, or completing laboratory experiments, they also come with different levels of risk based on the class of the laser. At the University of Chicago, it is important all Class 3b and class 4 lasers are registered so that the laser safety team can perform a hazard analysis on the laser system and the laboratory set-up. These hazard analyses include looking for these non-beam hazards! It is important to stay aware, and if you notice something that doesn’t seem quite right, don’t be afraid to say something. If you have any questions or concerns about lasers and laser safety at the University, do not hesitate to reach out to us at lasersafety@uchicago.edu.
Around Campus
Joint Research Safety Initiative (JRSI) UChicago's student-led safety team
JRSI is currently recruiting interested students to join their team! Check them out here: https://jrsi.uchicago.edu/
Interested in joining JRSI? Please contact the ORS Administrator.
Which Safety Unit Do I Call?
Have a question or need help but are unsure who to contact? Visit the new "Who Does What?" page available on the Environmental Health and Safety's website (direct link also available on the ORS website) where you will find a comprehensive list of activities, definitions and who to contact.
There is a search function that will help make navigation easier. If you have any questions, please contact us at researchsafety@uchicago.edu.
For emergencies, always contact campus police at 123 (campus phone), or 773-702-8181.
Lab Orientation Checklist
Labs onboarding new employees should use the “Research Lab Orientation Checklist” to ensure that they have a good idea of what the standards are for lab safety requirements. It lays out the general requirements, and gives an idea of what safety equipment should be pointed out to new hires.
Labs or programs with groups of new students should contact us to schedule an orientation.
Campus laboratory hazardous waste pickups regularly occur on Thursday's. Medical Center research laboratory hazardous waste pickups occur on Wednesday's.
For campus locations, enter waste pick-ups through EH&S Assistant. If you need access to the EH&S Assistant, contact Environmental Health and Safety at safety@uchicago.edu.
For laboratories located in the Medical Center, contact the Environmental Health and Safety Medicine Office at 773.795.SAFE or safety.office@uchospitals.edu.
Thank you for your continued cooperation with ensuring safety at the University of Chicago. Please feel free to contact Environmental Health and Safety at safety@uchicago.edu or 773.702.9999 with any questions.
Click here to learn more about Hazardous Waste handling.
Click here to view the Hazardous Waste Disposal Flow Chart
Knock Knock... Who is in your Lab?
The Office of Research Safety needs your help to keep track of personnel working in your laboratory.
TheEHS Assistant(EHSA) system is used to track who is working in a lab. To view the current roster in your lab, click on the Worker Registration icon. This section allows you to add new researchers and remove people who are no longer there. We only need to know about people who perform wet lab bench work or work with lasers - clinical staff, computational researchers, and office managers do not need to be added.
Laboratories working with recombinant DNA, pathogens, or biological toxins are required to have an Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) protocol. All laboratory members working with such biohazards need to be added to the IBC protocol. These protocols are tracked in AURAIBC, not EHSA. In AURA, adding or removing people needs to be done by a Personnel Funding Amendment. While the Personnel Funding Amendment is processed very rapidly, please note:
The PI must submit the amendment in AURA - although other workers in the lab can edit the protocol, only the PI can click the submit button.
After the amendment is approved, everyone added must log in to AURA, review the protocol, and acknowledge that they have been added.
If you have any questions about adding or removing people, please reach out to us at researchsafety@uchicago.edu
University of Chicago Accident and Incident Reporting (UCAIR) UCAIRprovides a user-friendly mechanism for reporting work-related accidents and incidents to EHSand ORS. For more information about UCAIR, visit the FAQs page. We also encourage the reporting of unsafe conditions observed on campus.
Please remember to first call 123 (on-campus phone) or 773.702.8181 (off-campus phone) for accidents requiring emergency response to ensure the appropriate emergency response personnel are notified.
Involved individuals, supervisors, affected persons, or witnesses can submit reports. Anonymous reporting is available for events that do not require medical treatment.
Medical Payments for UChicago Student Injuries (MedPay)
What is covered?
Out-of-pocket costs incurred for emergency medical care for accidents or injuries sustained during assigned responsibilities while in laboratories or other research activity, regardless of fault.
Who is covered?
UChicago students injured during assigned responsibilities in laboratories or other research activity. Includes enrolled UChicago graduate and undergraduate degree students.
The program is set up for covering emergency care at UCMC and would not apply to non-degree visiting students or injuries that occur in field research. In these instances, students should utilize their health insurance. Additionally, students who are injured abroad can call International SOS for assistance.
Submitting a timely report of the injury via UCAIR will route resulting medical bills for payment by the Office of Risk Management. It is important that UChicago students identify themselves as UChicago students when submitting via UCAIR.
Across
1. likelihood of potential damage or harm being done
6. products or their fumes may catch fire easily
8. SOP is an example of what
10. Where to find information on a chemical
Down
2. the minimum protection for the eyes
3. most common route of chemical exposure
4. Fume Hood is an example of what
5. Where should you report an accident or incident
7. source of potential damage or harm
9. The University's fire response plan
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