Administrators must demonstrate commitment to providing a safe environment. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) gives the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the responsibility of regulating hazardous wastes (A comprehensive safe handling program should include a policy for reporting and following up on employees’ accidental exposure to hazardous drugs (The health and safety of workers who handle hazardous drugs should be a high priority. All containers of HDs must be labelled, tagged or marked as such. (2004). dispensing of HDs, what to do if there is a spill, how to dispose of contaminated waste). Recommendations for the safe handling of hazardous drugs have been available for more than twenty years. Most veterinarians will only be involved in handling Group 2 or Group 3 drugs, which means that they can be handled by alternative containment strategies and will not require a significant investment in equipment and redesign of the facility.Alternative handling strategies can include the following: labeled storage areas and/or separate storage areas for HDs, posting what PPE is required to handle each of the drugs, use of chemotherapy gloves for drugs that are not antineoplastics, use of dedicated tools and equipment to handle HDs and the use of closed system transfer devices for injectable HDs that are not antineoplastics (i.e. In order to reduce the risk of exposure to these drugs and ensure safe handling, a hierarchy of controls will be required. Hazardous Drug Inventory Record Universal (Green) - handling and disposed of using normal precautions. High List Items (in addition to all NIOSH table I) AoR Templates. Controlling exposures to occupational hazards is the fundamental method of protecting workers. The OSHA guidelines suggest that drugs may leak during the manipulations required to reconstitute powders and the transfer of drug from one container to another. If a facility chooses not to perform an assessment of risk for each drug, then it must handle all of the drugs on the list according to the strictest policies. Every facility must complete an assessment of risk for all drugs and dosage forms they use that are on the NIOSH list.

chemotherapy hood). Workers who are not directly involved in activities related to hazardous drug handling are at risk for exposure.

Every facility should have a designated person responsible for developing and overseeing a hazardous drug safety program, so establish who that will be. Such interdisciplinary groups should review national guidelines regularly and develop policies and procedures based on the guidelines.
Some barriers are related to administrative issues, such as cost or staffing, while others are related to personnel’s knowledge, attitudes, and compliance. For this reason, the potent chemical was suggested as a treatment for lymphoid malignancies. %PDF-1.5 %���� Staff who are not typically involved in the handling of HDs can be exposed by coming in contact with surfaces that are contaminated due to improper handling.There is no level of exposure to HDs that is considered to be safe. It is estimated that as many as 5.5 million health care workers have the opportunity for exposure to hazardous drugs in the workplace (The potential adverse health risks from occupational exposure to hazardous drugs are based on the inherent toxicities of the drugs. Personal Protective Equipment Gowns, gloves, goggles, face-shields, N-95, PAPR/CAPR ... moderate, and reproductive risk ... drugs determined to be high risk hazardous drugs prior to NIOSH review. A closed system transfer device is defined as a drug system transfer device that mechanically prohibits the transfer of environmental contaminants into the system and the escape of HDs, or vapor concentrations, outside of the system. %%EOF 1908 0 obj <> endobj

do not split/ crush. Work is conducted on a standard laboratory bench within a contained area, and the laboratorian is wearing appropriate PPE to reduce the risk of accidental infection. Dermal absorption of hazardous drugs as a result of contact with contaminated surfaces is another potential route of exposure. 402 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<0E1ABB0E66D2844FB21F8FCB37281F49><2E7BA1C76B96194EA6F3484B523DF25A>]/Index[385 27]/Info 384 0 R/Length 84/Prev 322036/Root 386 0 R/Size 412/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream do not split/crush. Moderate (Orange) -handle at all times with gloves, gown, eye and face protection (with splash potential) and appropirate engineering controls. This article includes a discussion of current issues related to handling hazardous drugs in the workplace and a review of the history of safe handling guidelines, current recommendations, and barriers to implementing guidelines in health care settings.Hazardous drugs are drugs that pose a potential health risk to health care workers who may be exposed during preparation or administration.
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The EPA outlines four levels of proper PPE-wear depending on the nature and type of hazardous waste that is being dealt with, from first-line responders and large-scale hazardous waste emergencies to cleaning up errant waste around the office or plant. This document’s purpose is only to provide general guidance. %%EOF Publication No. Moderate (Orange) -handle at all times with gloves, gown, eye