Regulations and Standards,BSL-3,Health and Safety

An essential fear for animal research scientists, especially those working in biological containment facilities such as BSL-3 labs, is preventing exposure with potentially infectious organisms, tissues, and fluids. Inadvertent exposure to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), avian flu, Q fever, anthrax, or other pathogens that can affect humans is an occupational risk that we should never overlook. However, needle-sticks, cuts, splashes, and other events contribute to an alarming number of exposures each year. This issue, the Safety Guys aim to raise awareness and prevention of bloodborne pathogen (BBP) exposures beginning with an overview of the OSHA standard and discussion of the Center for Disease Control’s universal precautions.¹ Although these are aimed at healthcare settings, the elements can translate to work in animal lab facilities.

A recent report by the Government Accountability Office found that the number of high containment (BSL-3 and BSL-4) facilities have increased greatly since 2001.² BSL-4 facilities, those that handle the most dangerous agents, have increased in number from 5 to 15 and the total number of BSL-3 facilities is unknown. This expansion is occurring across all sectors (government, academic, and private) throughout the United States. Combine this growth in facilities with the CDC’s annual estimate of more than a half million percutaneous injuries involving contaminated sharps (granted most of these are in the healthcare industry) and you can see preventing BBP exposures is a major concern.

Preventing exposures to blood-borne pathogens begins with a commitment to implementing OSHA’s BBP standard, 40 CFR 1910.1030.³ This standard applies to all occupational exposures to blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). The standard defines blood as human blood, components thereof, or products made from human blood. OPIMis defined as the other human body fluids or any body fluid that is visibly contaminated with blood. OPIMalso includes any unfixed tissue or organ (other than intact skin) from a human (living or dead) and HIV-containing cell cultures or tissues. For lab animal facilities, we would expand these definitions to include infected animals, cell cultures, or tissues containing human pathogens.

To begin a program at your facility, using the OSHA BBP standard as a model, start with developing an Exposure Control Plan (ECP), a mandated written document designed to eliminate or minimize employee exposures. The ECP must be reviewed and updated annually and include documented consideration or implementation of new technology or safer medical devices to achieve its purpose. The main elements of the ECP are:

1. Exposure determinations
2. Communication of hazards to employees
3. Methods of compliance
4. Recordkeeping

Exposure determination is simply a list of employee classifications, tasks, and procedures in which occupational exposures occur and are made without regard to personal protective equipment. Compliance methods include universal precautions, engineering and work practice controls, personal protective equipment, and housekeeping issues, especially waste handling. Other ECP elements address Hepatitis B vaccination, post-exposure evaluation, and HIV/HBV research laboratories.