BIOSAFETY
SYMPOSIUM
On the 21st
of August 2006, OSHE in collaboration with 1st Phase Operations
organized a symposium on Establishing
an integrated safety and health management system
in biomedical laboratories
The key objective of the course was to raise
awareness on key safety related issues associated with operating a biomedical
laboratory in Singapore. With
the introduction of several new legislations, including the Workplace Safety and
Health Act, the Biological Agents and Toxins Act, as well as the Fire Safety
(Petroleum and Flammable Materials) Regulations, the occupational safety and
health landscape in Singapore
is undergoing a major changeover.
Importantly, managers and directors of companies, among
others, are now personally held accountable for workplace safety and health
practices with penalties of fines and jail terms for negligence. There is also
an associated increase in administrative obligations for compliance with the
various regulations, guidelines and license requirements. The detailed programme description is given below:
|
Duration
|
Session
|
Speaker
|
|
8:30 -
9:00
|
Registration
|
|
9:00 -
9:20
|
Safety
Management System for biomedical laboratories
|
Dr. Peck Thian Guan
|
|
9:20 -
9:50
|
OSH regulatory framework in Singapore - An Overview
|
Dr.
Derrick Tan
|
|
9:50 -
10:15
|
Establishing a successful laboratory risk assessment system
|
Mr.
Saravanan s/o Gunaratnam
|
|
10:15 -
10:35
|
Tea Break
(Basement Foyer)
|
|
10:35 -
11:10
|
The nuts
and bolts of a BSL-2 containment facility and fume hood certification
|
Mr. Keith
Toh
|
|
11:10 -
11:45
|
Biological
Safety Cabinet Maintenance and Certification
|
Mr. Bryan
Ong
|
|
11:45 -
12:30
|
Safe work
procedures
|
Assoc.
Prof. Ho Bow
|
|
12:30
|
End of
Symposium
|
The response to the symposium was
overwhelming with over one hundred and twenty participants, as it was a public
symposium; there were participants from biomedical research institutes/centers,
hospitals, clinics. Their participation provided an opportunity for the sharing
of best practices and systems in laboratory safety and health management.
