Infectious Disease Controls, Biohazards, and Laboratory Safety

Vocabulary practice flashcards based on the lecture on OSHA standards, bloodborne pathogens, emergency protocols, fire classifications, electrical safety, and laboratory chemical hygiene.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

A federal agency established by the US Congress in 1970 to assure safe and healthful working conditions for working persons, with the legal authority to inspect facilities, issue fines, and shut down non-compliant laboratories.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

A federal research agency within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) tasked with researching and recommending strategies to prevent workplace-related injuries and illnesses.

Universal Precautions

Safety guidelines established by the CDC and enforced by OSHA that mandate treating all human blood and specified body fluids as potentially infectious.

Bloodborne Pathogens

Disease-causing microorganisms present in human body fluids that are transmitted exclusively through contact with infectious fluids, such as blood, semen, synovial fluid, amniotic fluid, vaginal secretions, and saliva in dental procedures.

Hepatitis B Virus (HBV)

The most commonly transmitted bloodborne pathogen in healthcare settings, presenting with jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, anorexia, and vomiting; asymptomatic carriers can still transmit the infection.

Hepatitis B Vaccination Series

An immunization protocol consisting of 3 shots administered over a 6-month period, providing 87% to 95% efficacy, which must be offered free of charge to all employees at risk for occupational exposure.

Hepatitis B Post-Vaccination Titer

A laboratory blood test drawn 1 to 2 months after the third vaccine injection (for series begun after February 14, 2000) to confirm protective antibody levels; if low, the full series is repeated.

Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)

A bloodborne viral pathogen causing fatigue and abdominal pain that serves as the leading cause of liver transplants; it is treated with antiviral medications and currently has no preventative vaccine.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

A bloodborne retrovirus that compromises immune defense, causes swollen lymph nodes, night sweats, and opportunistic infections, may remain clinically asymptomatic for years, and can progress to AIDS.

Engineering Controls

Physical devices or technology engineered to eliminate or isolate hazards directly at their source, such as sharps disposal containers and engineered safer sharps devices.

Work Practice Controls

Behavioral procedures that reduce occupational risk through proper task execution, including thorough hand-washing, the one-handed needle recapping technique, prohibiting mouth pipetting, and banning food in contaminated work areas.

Post-Exposure Evaluation and Follow-Up

Immediate, confidential clinical management provided free to an exposed employee under a licensed healthcare professional's guidance, requiring informed consent, testing of both employee and source patient, and prophylactic interventions per CDC guidelines.

90-Day Blood Preservation Rule

An OSHA standard provision permitting an exposed employee who declines immediate serological testing to have their baseline blood sample drawn and held in laboratory preservation for up to 90 days before deciding on testing.

Safe Needle Regulations (January 2001 Standard)

Revised OSHA Bloodborne Pathogen Standards implemented in January 2001 that mandated safer needle devices and engineering controls to reduce needlestick injuries, up to 76% of which are preventable.

Butterfly Needle (Winged Infusion Set)

A winged venipuncture device noted for having the highest rate of accidental phlebotomy-related sharps injuries, often occurring during transit between the patient and the sharps box.

Fire Triangle

The three components simultaneously required for ignition and fire combustion: heat, fuel, and oxygen.

Class A Fire

A fire classification involving ordinary combustible solid materials such as wood, paper, textiles, and plastics.

Class B Fire

A fire classification involving flammable organic solvents, oils, paints, gases, grease, and air-vapor mixtures.

Class C Fire

A fire classification originating within or directly adjacent to energized electrical equipment and wiring.

Class D Fire

A fire classification fueled by combustible reactive metals such as magnesium, titanium, sodium, and lithium.

Class Halon Extinguisher

A clean-agent chemical fire extinguisher specifically designated for extinguishing fires in sensitive electronics, servers, and computer rooms without leaving corrosive residue.

R.A.C.E.

A sequential safety protocol acronym for healthcare fire response: Remove patients from immediate danger, Activate the fire alarm, Contain or confine the fire by shutting doors, and Extinguish the fire if safe.

P.A.S.S.

An operational acronym guiding the deployment of portable fire extinguishers: Pull the pin, Aim the nozzle at the base of the fire, Squeeze the trigger handle, and Sweep side to side.

NFPA Rating Label (NFPA 704)

A standardized color-coded diamond symbol indicating four hazards: Blue for Health Hazard, Red for Fire Hazard (Flash Points), Yellow for Instability Hazard, and White for Specific Hazards (such as ACID, ALK, COR, OX, or Radiation).

Safety Medical Device Act

A federal law mandating that any healthcare device failure or device-related incident that results in patient or employee serious illness, severe injury, or death must be reported immediately to risk management.

Defective Equipment Tagging

The laboratory safety process of de-energizing faulty equipment, tagging it prominently with a 'Defective – Do Not Use' label, alerting supervisory staff, and logging a call to Plant Operations.

Tachometer

A specialized calibration device utilized to verify and measure the rotational operating speed (revolutions per minute, RPM) of a laboratory centrifuge.

Centrifuge Aerosol Settling Protocol

A safety requirement specifying that if a glass collection tube fractures inside a centrifuge, the unit must be turned off and the lid kept securely closed for at least 30 minutes to allow hazardous aerosols to settle.

15-Minute Chemical Wash Protocol

An emergency decontamination guideline mandating that skin or eye surfaces exposed to hazardous or caustic chemical splashes be flushed continuously at an eyewash or safety shower station for a minimum of 15 minutes before seeking STAT medical attention.

Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

Mandated documentation under the 'Right to Know' law that details a chemical's physical identity, dangerous reactivity, storage precautions, personal exposure hazards, and emergency spill-containment procedures.

Chemical Hygiene Plan

A mandatory written laboratory program detailing engineering controls (fume hoods), standard operating procedures, medical examination requirements, and personal protective protocols to minimize toxic chemical exposures.

In-House Chemical Labels

Secondary container workplace identifiers that must be prominently displayed, legible, written in English, and clearly state chemical identity, specific hazard warnings, and links to master facility chemical lists and MSDS sheets.

Steam Sterilization (Autoclaving)

A decontamination method using high-pressure saturated steam that, alongside incineration, is the most commonly recommended process for treating biohazardous infectious waste.

Incineration

A high-temperature thermal destruction process commonly used to treat and dispose of rigid biohazard sharps containers and combustible infectious laboratory waste.

Formalin

A commonly used histological preservative and fixative categorized as a hazardous tissue irritant and recognized carcinogen.

Glutaraldehyde

A potent liquid chemical disinfectant and cold sterilizing agent known to cause skin irritation and induce occupational asthma.

Acute Chemical Health Effects

Immediate physiological consequences resulting from acute chemical exposure, including nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headaches, skin irritation, rashes, fainting, or acute fatal toxicity.

Chronic Chemical Health Effects

Long-term, persistent health impairments arising from prolonged or repetitive hazardous substance exposure, encompassing permanent organ damage, malignancies (cancer), mutagenic abnormalities, and fertility disorders.