Lab safety and compliance should always be a priority in a laboratory setting. Doing so can help prevent injury, protect the environment, ensure compliance with safety regulations, and promote a safe work environment. With a few simple steps, laboratory personnel can ensure that the laboratory is a safe and compliant space.
The first step in prioritising lab safety and compliance is to create and enforce a lab safety policy. This policy should include all applicable safety regulations, as well as general lab procedures that employees should follow. A laboratory manager should review this policy on a regular basis to ensure that it is up-to-date and that all employees are familiar with the guidelines. Additionally, it is important to ensure that all new employees are given a complete safety orientation that includes a review of the safety policy.
In addition to having a safety policy, it is important to provide adequate training for all laboratory personnel. This training should include both general workplace safety topics and specific laboratory safety topics, such as proper handling of hazardous chemicals, use of protective equipment, and proper disposal of waste. All new employees should also be given a safety orientation that includes a review of the safety policy.
It is also important to have regular safety inspections.
By conducting frequent inspections of the laboratory, hazardous materials and practices can be identified and corrected before they become a problem. Additionally, these inspections are important for compliance purposes.
Finally, it is important to encourage communication among laboratory personnel. The key to effective communication is understanding and being understood. Being more transparent in your communication is a good way to avoid some of the issues caused by poor communication. Getting to know your lab mates results in overall healthier relationships, with more intellectual and emotional support. It also increases workflow, as effective communication leads to efficient coordination of tasks, particularly when the same reagents and instrumentation are being used.
