Research
Assessment of safety culture in medical laboratory
Assessment of safety culture in medical laboratory among students in Health science University
Student name
Supervisor name
Introduction
Laboratory safety may seem like a simple aspect to implement, but it is based on complex and ever-changing science, making it hard to administer. Safety standards and practices evolve as scientists gain more knowledge about the equipment and chemicals they use. Today, there are thousands of lab scientists working with different specimens to gain new knowledge, identify new health threats, and curb outbreaks (Meyer, Reniers & Cozzani, 2019). Although laboratory work is critical for protecting people and saving lives, it is not without risks. Lab users often deal with risky pathogens and toxins which may put their lives in danger if not properly handled. Consequently, it is necessary to conduct an assessment in order to determine the situation in our medical labs and come up with appropriate techniques for handling chemicals and specimens safely.
Ludmerer (2017) defines the term culture as underlying values and shared perceptions that have a strong influence on how people behave in an organization and determine how they dress and carry out their duties. The National Research Council (2011) defines safety culture as the product of individual and team efforts toward values and behavior aimed at promoting and enhancing safety-oriented laboratory processes. A strong culture of laboratory safety enables an institution to provide a safe lab environment for its students, staff, and visitors. Since we are in a dynamic world marked by continuous changes, these safety standards need to be reviewed periodically to ensure that they are relevant and up-to-date. Medical labs are also different. Appropriate safety practices on one lab may not be applicable in another. Consequently, every institution must develop its own internal quality control to provide security and safety for its lab users based on underlying needs and specifications (Ludmerer, 2017).
Medical or clinical laboratories refer to facilities where clinical pathology tests are conducted on clinical specimens to derive information about the health of a patient and aid in detection, treatment, and prevention of illness (Weeks & Bagian, 2013). A medical lab forms a critical link in the healthcare chain since over 70 percent of clinical decisions are based on diagnostic tests results. From simple lipid profile tests to assessing the right antibacterials for destroying a particular strain of resistant bacteria, medical labs provide vital data which the physicians use to accurately diagnose illness and treat the patient successfully. Without medical labs, physicians would not have been able to save as many lives as they do today.
Though laboratory work in critical, it is not without risks. Lab users are highly exposed to numerous hazards, including physical, chemical, and biological hazards (Ludmerer, 2017). Consequently, organizations that sponsor medical labs have a responsibility to develop strong internal quality controls to provide safety and security for their lab users and the public. Academic labs, in particular, have an obligation to instill professional values and attitudes toward environmental health and safety among the students. Teaching safety standards and practices in the lab should be a top priority for institutions of higher learning as they prepare their students for careers in health science laboratories. Hands-on training should also be mandatory for students in order to instill in them a resolute commitment to maintaining a safe and healthy laboratory environment.
Significance of the study
The aim of this study is to assess the safety culture in medical laboratory among students in health science University in order to establish suitable lab processes and practices that can be applied to improve health and safety in medical laboratories. In so doing, the study will help to establish how safety protocols and training systems can lead to a strong foundation upon which a successful laboratory safety culture can be created. Comment by Administrator: Written at the end of significance of the study Comment by Administrator: Please add: help in establishing Comment by Administrator: Please transfer it to be 1st paragraph and you need to add one or two paragraphs in this part
Specific objectives
· To assess the safety culture in medical laboratory among students in health science University.
· To explore perception of students regarding safety culture in medical laboratory
· To determine factors affecting students’ perception regarding safety culture in medical laboratory
Research question
The aim of the research is exploratory, with the following research question:
1. What is the perception of students regarding safety culture in medical laboratory?
2. What are the factors affecting students’ perception regarding safety culture in medical laboratory?
Literature review
Practical or laboratory work is considered a vital component for health science students (Weeks & Bagian, 2013). However, the work exposes students to higher risks because of the hazards involved in the lab environment. Meyer, Reniers & Cozzani (2019) notes that the risk of lab accidents in institutions of higher learning is much greater than in other organizations such as industrial and hospital labs due to the perception among the students that a small quantity of chemicals would not be dangerous to people and the environment. Ludmerer (2017) reports that out of 4,836 cases of laboratory accidents reported in 2016, over 3,000 cases involved students in colleges and universities. The high number in schools was attributed to lack of adequate knowledge among the students in handling hazardous materials, failure to provide advanced safety training for students and laboratory personnel, and lack of proper risk assessment.
Safety standards and policies in institutions of higher learning are normally developed by the management using standards and regulations established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Nevertheless, there is always a possibility that a breach would occur and expose the students to great danger. The breach may be as a result of over-crowding, poorly designed labs, careless attitude among the students, or lack of safety culture and awareness. Laboratory safety not only involves strict adherence to the set rules but it also depends on the overall commitment and attitude of the users. Students may follow the rules only in some situations and might not adhere to them all. The major challenge in training the students about laboratory safety is to teach them to recognize and understand possible risks rather than just adhere to safety rules (Stuart & McEwen, 2015.
Health and safety are crucial components in science education (National Research Council, 2011). It is, therefore, necessary to enhance safety standards and practices in medical labs run by institutions of higher learning. Universities should play a more active role in creating a safety culture and awareness to ensure that students remain safe during lab and practical classes. Training must start early in a student’s career and should cover best practices when dealing with materials in the lab as well as the proper approach to understanding the safe handling of hazardous chemicals.
Materials and Methods:
Study Design:
The study design will be descriptive cross-sectional design.
Setting:
The study will be conducted in Riyadh Elm University, Saudi Arabia.
Study Population and Sampling:
Where,
n: Sample size (245)
N: population size (670)
Z: Confidence level at 95% (1.96)
d: Error proportion (0.05)
p: Probability (50%)
Inclusion Criteria:
· Students in healthcare departments
· Students in all levels
· Male and female students
Exclusion criteria:
· Students in non-healthcare departments.
Data Collection Tools:
Data collection will be conducted using online self-administered structured questionnaire which developed by the researcher; the tool of data collection will be consists of two parts:
· The first part will concerned with socio-demographic data for students’ such as age, gender, level, …. etc.
· The second part will concerned with the perception of students regarding safety culture in medical laboratory.
Validity and Reliability:
The pilot study will carried out to evaluate the validity and reliability of the questionnaire in order to detect any ambiguity in the tool, clarity of the items, as well as to determine the time consumed for data collection. Necessary modifications will be carried out and develop the final form of the tool. Cronbach's alpha coefficient will be used to measure the reliability of the items.
Data Analysis:
The data will be analyzed by using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20. For descriptive statistical analysis; frequencies and percentages will be used for all variables included in the study to describe the demographic data and explore the perception of students regarding safety culture in medical laboratory, arithmetic means and standard deviations are also used. For inferential analysis, the Chi-Square test was used to examine the relation and association between variables. The statistical test of significance, or p-value, in this study was set at <0.05. The internal consistency of the tool was measured by calculating the Cronbach’s alpha.
Ethical Considerations
· Informed consents will obtained from all participants for agreement about participation.
· The participants will have the data collection tool that contained an explanation of the study, its purpose, and the required instructions will be given to participants.
· Participation will be voluntary and participants have the right to refuse participating in the study.
· All answers will be maintained confidential and for the purpose of the current study only.
Reference
Ludmerer, K. M. (2017). Safety climate in university and college laboratories: Impact of organizational and individual factors. Journal of Safety Research, 38(1), 91-102.
Meyer, T., Reniers, G., & Cozzani, V. (2019). Risk Management and Education. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. Available from: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=7LdZTA4AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra
National Research Council (US) Committee on Prudent Practices in the Laboratory (2011). Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Management of Chemical Hazards: Updated Version. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US). Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK55878/ doi: 10.17226/12654
Stuart, R. B., & McEwen, L. R. (2015). The safety “use case”: Co-developing chemical information management and laboratory safety skills. Journal of Chemical Education, 93(3), 516-526. Available from: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jchemed.5b00511
Weeks, W. B., & Bagian, J. P. (2013). Safety education being the key to keep the laboratories safe in universities [J]. Experimental Technology and Management, 9.
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