• 25-38% of lab personnel surveyed have been involved in an accident or injury in the lab that was not reported to the supervisor or principal investigator;
• 27% of researchers stated that they never conducted any kind of risk assessment before performing laboratory work. Academic researchers were the least likely to assess risk, followed by industry and government; and
• In one study of lab safety between 1966 and 1984, 81% of accidents occurred in teaching labs, 13% in research labs, and 2% in fabrication rooms.

=EF=BB=BF

Hello,

I have a faculty member who is looking for the following:

"Do you know if there are statistics available for how many (teaching) lab accidents are caused by instructors with a lack of experience/training? Another good statistic might be how many lab accidents occur in each kind of chem lab in a typical year. "

They would like to use this information to make a case for hiring more qualified instructors in general and organic chemistry laboratories. I do realize that near misses and smaller incidents/accidents may not be as readily reported by these less experienced instructors, so this data might be tricky to obtain.

I appreciate any help you can provide!

Shannon

SHANNON C. NEPHEW, 

MS, CSM, NRCC-CHO

Chemical Hygiene Officer, Hudson Hall Science Complex Building Manager

Science Programs and Facilities Support Professional

Hudson Hall 317

101 Broad Street
Plattsburgh, NY 12901

(o) 518-593-9612

plattsburgh.edu

    

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