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Safety Alert - Accurate Labelling
3 January 2019
Containers in shared incubators were not labelled correctly and required a safety check.
Containers were found in a shared incubator labelled with a name indicating the contents were hazardous. A technician was concerned for their personal safety and sought medical advice.
The name on the label in fact referred to a ‘knock-out’ gene, which was not hazardous to health. The anxiety experienced by the technician, therefore, could have been avoided.
Action to be taken
- All containers, equipment and rooms that may contain hazardous substances must be labelled in a consistent and unambiguous way to ensure staff and students are correctly informed before entering an area.
- Labelling must avoid using acronyms, abbreviations or terms that may not be commonly understood outside of your group or immediate team.