Environmental Health & Safety supports the mission of EVMS by providing comprehensive environmental health and safety services to all faculty, students and staff. These services include: biological safety, chemical & environmental safety, occupational safety and radiation safety.
Services
Natural Disaster
While natural disasters cannot always be predicted, there are steps you can take to prepare for an approaching storm. Use the links to help you know what to do for both your laboratory and your home in an emergency.
Emergency Freezers
EVMS Environmental Health and Safety has -80°C surge freezer space available, for use in an emergency or when defrosting a -80°C freezer. Contact Environmental Health & Safety for access:
During normal business hours contact:
Outside of regular business hours, call the Environmental Health & Safety Freezer Pager at: 757.415.0014.
- When you hear the beep, enter your contact phone number followed by #.
- Environmental Health & Safety will return your page in order to coordinate opening the Emergency Freezer(s).
- If you decide to arrive on-campus, contact EVMS Police and Public Safety at 757.446.5199, so they can assist with your parking and access needs.
Resources
EVMS Biological Safety office addresses employee safety, training, policies and other concerns regarding occupational exposure to biological agents and materials. The EVMS Biological Safety Manual is the primary source of information on biosafety at the school.
Institutional Biosafety Committee
Investigators proposing to use biological materials require authorization from the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC). IBC Registrations are submitted using the SciShield Management System.
The Biological Safety Officer (BSO) is available to help Principal Investigators register their laboratories, as well as help with any other aspect of the system (such as forms, equipment registration, etc.). Additional information about the IBC and its procedures are published by the Office of Research.
Resources
- Biological Safety Manual
- Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL), 6th edition - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- NIH Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant or Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules (NIH Guidelines) - Office of Science Policy
- Dual Use: US Government Dual Use Policy & Dual Use Research of Concern
Responsibilities of the Chemical Safety Office include:
- chemical use and storage procedures
- waste management
- inventory
- emergency procedures
These elements are conveyed to faculty and staff in laboratory safety training courses such as Chemical Hygiene Plan.
The Chemical Hygiene Plan, a requirement of the OSHA Laboratory Standard, is the primary source of information for procedures on the safe use of chemicals in the laboratory at EVMS. A copy of the "Chemical Hygiene Plan" should be kept in each laboratory.
A companion text to the "Chemical Hygiene Plan" is the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) binder which is also located in each lab. SDSs describe characteristics of chemicals and list precautions for their use. The SDS should be reviewed prior to using a chemical for the first time and reviewed periodically.
Resources
Occupational safety is the prevention of accidents, incidents and events that harm people or the community.
The Occupational Safety Office offers:
- Respirator Fit Testing
- Respiratory Protection and HAZCOM training
- Advice on health and safety regulations, procedures, codes and standards and helping ensure continued compliance
- Work site inspections
- Accident investigation
Resources
Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) is licensed to possess and use radioactive material by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Each individual proposing to use radioactive material in research is required, by license conditions, to submit applications that document previous training and experience with radioactive material and describes the specific radionuclide and proposed protocol. Individuals authorized to use these materials are either:
- Authorized Users - faculty members
- Qualified Users - laboratory technicians and students
- Restricted Users - individuals that have not had prior training that must work under direct supervision of an Authorized User
Irradiation Services
EVMS Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) offers the capabilities and services of an orthovoltage x-ray beam for scientific research that requires irradiation. For more details pertaining to the equipment used by Environmental Health & Safety, please refer to the document on Irradiation Services.
Fee Schedule
- Beam use is charged per exposure, per Gray, rounded up to the nearest whole Gray
- For single exposure lasting 45 minutes or longer, the per-hour rate will apply in 15-minute increments
- Calibration is charged per exposure event and does not include specialized phantom preparation
| User Category | Per Gray | Per Hour | Calibration |
|---|---|---|---|
| EVMS Faculty | $0.60 | $40.00 | $20.00 |
| Other Academic | $0.90 | $80.00 | $40.00 |
| External | $1.20 | $120.00 | $60.00 |
