Building your Own Laboratory Safety Video

Mt San Antonio College Department of Chemistry

Charles Newman

2YC3 191st Conference at Mt San Antonio College

Students and Lab Safety Videos• Disconnected• Unfamiliar laboratory and equipment• Older Instructor “lecturing” safety

Question: How do you capture the attention of a generation that is addicted to reality TV, texting and fast paced video games?

Our Project Goal

• Make a student centered Lab Safety Video• Use a familiar lab environment• Laboratory Safety as part of first day orientation• Keep it moving, fast pace using small bits• Update info and retain the best of the original• Addressing Right to Know and an evacuation plan• Properly handling laboratory waste• Course specific: 2 Videos - Gen Chem & Organic• Meets insurance and risk management requirements• Total Time will be about 12 minutes

Project Objectives

• Get buy-in and final approval to make a video– Faculty Colleagues– Division Dean– Health and Safety Officer– Risk Management (Insurance)

• Utilized Broadcasting Department professionals• Making it fun – a bit of light comedy• Special Projects class (2 units) and 5 students• Write and have faculty approval for the script.

Appropriate Lab Attire

• Retain the best of what has preceded before• Little has changed over the past three decades in the

areas of lab attire.• Used very similar language as previous safety videos.• Brought the content and clothing style up to date.• Showed actual examples• We went a bit overboard on shoes.

• Safety Glasses– Impact Resistant– Incomplete

splash protection• Safety Goggles

– Splash Protection– Stylish Glasses– Fogging

• Contact Lenses – OK with Goggles

• Glasses with Side Shields– Not acceptable

Fit with Stylish glasses

Emphasis on Safety Goggles

Safety Shower and Eye Wash

• Identify the safety equipment in your own lab. Eyewashes were different.

• Unfamiliar safety equipment may lead to unintentional mishaps.

• Students expressed hesitation with rinsing their eyes with water from a “gross eyewash” or a “gross hose”. This hesitation could result in further injury.

• The “clicky” old fashion projector background sounds were added to cover up many of our unprofessional acting and mistakes.

• Many students are fearful about lighting a Bunsen burner.

• Reassurance with a step by step instruction for lighting a Bunsen burner

• Eliminating Trip Hazards

• Book bags on the floor

Bunsen Burna-Phobia

Broken Glass

Star Cracks

Broken Glass

• Broken Glass Bins– No Glass in the trash!

• Chipped edges and lips of Glassware– Test Tubes– Beakers– Flasks

• Broken glass is eliminated

Handling Waste

• Handling and managing hazardous waste• Training and preventing pouring chemicals down

the drain and from mixing chemicals.

Right to Know

Lab Clean-up Instructions

Student and Faculty Feedback• Students Response is Positive

– Positives• Fun and not boring• Student centered• That’s my lab!

Faculty–Generally Positive– Positives

• Our laboratories - students identify lab features• Increased student engagement

– Negatives• No use of the Safety Shower in first video• Too much of one faculty• Not complete, needs more information.

Acknowledgments

• Students– General Chemistry Safety Video

• Pam Lopez, Suzi Jimenez, Kenneth Palaad, Genevieve Nguyen, Andrea Louie

– Organic Chemistry Safety Video• Kenneth Palaad, Suzi Jimenez, Jose de Luna,

Andrew Kochi, Andrea Louie

• Mt SAC Broadcasting Department• Natural Sciences Division• Faculty and Staff consultants