Eye Injuries in Canadian Chemical Laboratories
By Keith D Gordon Ph.D. Vice President Research, CNIB
Last year CNIB conducted a household survey on the incidence of eye
injuries. We asked people whether they had experienced an eye injury in the
past year that required medical attention. Our results showed that a
staggering two percent of respondents had an eye injury within the previous
year and one in four people who had an eye injury had to take time off work
or school as a result. The results further showed that the number of eye
injuries occurring at home and at work were roughly the same – 37.5% and
35.5% respectively.
CNIB believes that many of these injuries were preventable and that by
studying injuries that have occurred both at home and at work, we could
play a proactive role in helping prevent eye injuries. For this reason we
asked members of the Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC) to assist us with
understanding the incidence and causes of eye injuries in chemical
laboratories.
Through two e-mailings, and an announcement in Canadian Chemical News,
all CIC members were asked to complete an on-line survey on their
experience of eye injuries and eye safety policy in the laboratory. Responses
were received from 347 members
Results:
One in eighteen respondents (5.5%) was found to have experienced at least
one eye injury over the course of their careers. One in four of the injuries
was radiation induced (mostly ultraviolet radiation). There were
approximately the same number of men and women experiencing eye
injuries, while respondents with Ph.D.’s showed a smaller overall number of
eye injuries over the course of their careers. Only one of the reported
accidents resulted in permanent vision loss in the injured eye. The rest
resolved in two weeks or less. About half of all accidents resulted in injury to
both eyes.
Eye Protection:
One of the surprising results of this survey was the observation that half the
respondents experiencing eye injuries were wearing safety glasses or
prescription safety glasses. The rest were either not wearing eye protection
or were wearing regular prescription eye glasses. There were no respondents
with eye injuries who were either wearing safety eye goggles or a face
shield.
Safety Training:
Almost half of the respondents who had incurred an eye injury had not had
safety training in the year prior to their injury. One in four (28%) of all
respondents have not received safety training that included eye safety within
the past 5 years. This is in spite of the fact that 93% of respondents
reported having a policy in place in their laboratory regarding eye protection.
Laboratory Facilities:
Questions regarding the availability of eyewash stations, emergency drench
showers and the availability of a plentiful supply of clean water showed
these to be in place in over 90% of laboratories. 84% of respondents had
received instructions on how to use a fire extinguisher.
Recommendations:
It appears that the high number of chemists who incur an eye injury over
the course of their careers could be reduced by a few simple precautions:
1. Wearing safety goggles rather than safety glasses.
Half of the eye injuries reported were incurred by people wearing
either safety glasses or safety prescription glasses, while none were
incurred by people wearing eye goggles. Clearly, chemicals have the
ability to get into the eye around safety glasses and apparently not
around safety eye goggles. On this basis I would highly recommend
that lab chemists wear eye goggles when working directly with
chemicals. Safety eye glasses should be worn at all other times when
in the laboratory.
2. More safety training involving eye safety.
The high number of respondents who had no safety training regarding
eye safety in the year prior to their accident, coupled with the fact that
one in four of all respondents had no safety training regarding eye
safety in the past 5 years, points to the serious need for the inclusion
of eye safety training as an integral part of safety training in the
laboratory.
3. Wearing safety glasses that absorb radiation, primarily UV radiation.
The fact that one quarter of people experiencing eye injuries in the
laboratory did so as a result of radiation, argues for radiationabsorbing safety glasses to be worn at all times when in the presence
of equipment where radiation emission is a possibility.
Vision is one of the most precious gifts we possess. A little prevention can go
a long way to help us preserve our eye sight.