Hi Ralph,

They fall under the same lab standard that those of us working in chem labs do due to working with hazardous chemicals on a laboratory scale. So, I would recommend the same training. Plus, you do not know if they might add a reagent of a different safety class in the near future. They should be prepared to at least recognize how to identify the hazards and manage the risks associated with each. Therefore, they should be trained on each of the items you questioned.

This is exactly what I recommend to my counterpart in our Biology Dept and she is supportive of providing such training to her researchers in addition to the BioSafety training.

Monique Wilhelm
Laboratory Manager
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
University of Michigan - Flint

-----Original Message-----
From: DCHAS-L Discussion List [mailto:dchas-l**At_Symbol_Here**med.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Stuart, Ralph
Sent: Tuesday, March 22, 2016 1:29 PM
To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Thought question: Chemical safety for biologists

I have a question that I'd like input from the DCHAS community on:
The quick version is:
What information about chemical safety do biologists need to know?

The longer version of the question is that I'm working with the KSC undergrad biology lab coordinator to develop introductory lab safety training for biology research students who work with a relatively limited suite of chemicals, some of which are flammables, others of which are significantly toxic, many of which are neither.
- For example, do these students need to hear about all of the GHS hazard classes in the 1.5 hours available for the training?
- What kind of information do they need about chemical resistance of lab gloves?
- How much detail do they need to understand best practices for chemical storage cabinets and use of other lab ventilation devices?
etc.

Thanks for any help with thinking this through.

- Ralph

Ralph Stuart, CIH, CCHO
Chemical Hygiene Officer
Keene State College

ralph.stuart**At_Symbol_Here**keene.edu

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