Fostering a culture of lab safety

More than 200 professionals visited WCM-Q as the college sponsored two one-day training courses on laboratory safety for researchers, educators, allied health professionals and laboratory personnel from institutions across Qatar.

The 6th annual Safety in the Laboratory course brought an expert from the US-based Laboratory Safety Institute (LSI) to WCM-Q to explain the most up-to-date procedures and protocols relating to accident prevention, dealing with biological and animal hazards, chemical handling, storage and disposal, eye and face protection, and electrical safety, among other issues.

Refreshing and updating the knowledge of laboratory safety procedures is essential for those who work in what can be a hazardous environment, explained course director Thomas Doyle, Director of Environmental Health, Safety and Security at WCM-Q.

“It is absolutely critical to engender a culture of respect for safety procedures among all professionals who spend part or all of their time working in laboratories, and a key part of that is regular training,” said Doyle. “Not only does this provide lab professionals with the latest knowledge, but it also helps to prevent complacency. We are very pleased that so many people joined us and engaged with the course so proactively.”

In total, approximately 220 participants completed the comprehensive training course, which was led by course instructor Dr. James Kaufman, President and CEO of the Laboratory Safety Institute. The same course was offered two days running to allow as many laboratory professionals as possible from across Qatar to attend.

The course objectives and learning outcomes were to enable participants to understand how to identify hazards in the lab and protect themselves and others, develop more effective lab safety programs, and create safer, healthier and more environmentally friendly places in which to work, learn and live. Dr. Kaufman gave practical advice on how to avoid accidents and injuries with simple, low-cost solutions, demonstrated how simple precautions could prevent both injury and costly, time-consuming litigation, and provided resources to further understanding of the fundamentals of lab safety.

Participants attended from all over Qatar, including private health clinics and laboratories, the Ministry of Interior, Qatar Red Crescent , Qatar University, Qatar Gas, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Sidra Medical and Research Center, Qatar Foundation Health, Safety, Security and Environment Directorate, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar and Texas A&M University at Qatar, among several other institutions.

Participant Tareq A. Samra, Academic Research Associate at HMC’s Translational Research Institute, said:

“I have received very comprehensive training for my work but I like the idea that we all meet one another and develop a culture of health and safety. This means we all feel a duty for the wellbeing of everyone who might be affected by our actions. As well as keeping your own lab safe, you want to know that you can go into other labs and be safe because everyone is aiming for the same high standards.

It has been a great course.”

The course, which was accredited for the first time since its launch in 2011, was jointly organized by WCM-Q’s Division of Environment, Health, Safety and Security in partnership with the Division of Continuing Professional Development. The activity was an Accredited Group Learning Activity (Category 1) as defined by the Qatar Council for Healthcare Practitioners - Accreditation Department and was approved for a maximum of seven hours.

Earlier in the week a total of 85 WCM-Q research faculty and staff also completed a comprehensive laboratory safety refresher course, which is run each year.

Doyle added:

“This regular training helps to ensure awareness of safe work practices which is vital in helping to prevent work-related injuries and illnesses, as well as helping us to avoid costly and time-consuming litigation associated with negligence lawsuits. Refresher training also helps ensure compliance with Qatar National Research Fund and Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar policies and best safety practices.

Most importantly, refresher training has been shown to increase safety awareness and knowledge, which helps to reduce injuries and promotes wellbeing and a culture of safety and respect for one another’s wellbeing.”