Risk Assessment in the Research Laboratory

Risk assessment is a term that is applied to a process that we all use every day to make decisions. Conducting risk assessments while working in the laboratory should be integrated into the research culture. Reagents and equipment used in research laboratories can be hazardous if used improperly or without appropriate precautions. The first step in limiting risk is identifying the materials that can be hazardous. The second step is to assess the risk that they present during the experiments that will take place—a process called risk assessment. Once the hazards are identified and the risks assessed, a risk management strategy can be put in place to reduce the risks to an acceptable level. This process (hazard identification, risk assessment, risk management) must be repeated as often as new materials, new procedures, and new people are introduced into the laboratory. Curr. Protoc. Essential Lab. Tech. 1:A.1B.1-A.1B.11. © 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.