Share thisWe all have events in our professional lives that shape the way we look at issues. For us, one of these was an accident where researcher was unloading a cart of chemicals onto a bench. He had two large bottles of glacial acetic acid in his hands. He tapped the side of one against the edge of the bench and it broke. The bottom fell out of the bottle, spilling the contents on his legs and feet. He then slipped and fell down in the pool of acid and broke the second bottle. Much of the lower half of his body was now soaked with acid. A co-worker tried to help. She got him over to the sink and began trying to splash water on him. There was a lot of noise and yelling, which drew a researcher from an adjoining lab to see what was going on. He quickly sized up the situation, assumed control, and pulled the victim into the hall to the emergency shower and initiated the appropriate decontamination process. It was estimated that this onset of decontamination was up to several minutes into the exposure event. The victim was hospitalized with chemical burns. The tragedy of this incident is that because there was a safety shower immediately outside the room in the hallway, decontamination could have been initiated in just seconds.
Accidents do happen and personal protective equipment and engineering controls do sometimes fail, and this is when we need emergency procedure and equipment to minimize the effects of accidental exposure to chemicals and biological or physical agents. For those in animal facilities or in support spaces, emergency showers and eyewash stations provide this means for this immediate decontamination. With this article, we want to bring to your attention four very important, take home messages:
- Speed to action: Time to decontamination is critical in minimizing injury
- Duration: Rinse affected area for a sufficiently long time
- Access: Maintain free and unimpeded access to emergency equipment:
- Equipment: Use appropriate and maintained equipment
Speed to action!
OSHA considers emergency showers and eyewashes under their section on Medical Services and First Aid. They specifically state in the regulation http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owalink.query_links? src_doc_type=STANDARDS&src_unique_file=1910_0151&src_anchor _name=1910.151(c)1910.151(c) “Where the eyes or body of any person may be exposed to injurious corrosive materials, suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing of the eyes and body shall be provided within the work area for immediate emergency use.” It is important to note the phrase “for immediate use” in the standard. From a practical standpoint, regulations aside, this is critical. As with our case above, delaying treatment, even for a few seconds or minutes, may greatly increase the severity of injury. Any contaminated clothing should be removed under the shower to remove the chemical from prolonged intimate contact with the skin. “Where the eyes or body of any person may be exposed to injurious corrosive materials, suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing of the eyes and body shall be provided within the work area for immediate emergency use.” It is important to note the phrase “ for immediate use” in the standard. From a practical standpoint, regulations aside, this is critical. As with our case above, delaying treatment, even for a few seconds or minutes, may greatly increase the severity of injury. Any contaminated clothing should be removed under the shower to remove the chemical from prolonged intimate contact with the skin.