Evaluation of Chemotherapy Drug Exposure in a Veterinary Specialty Hospital

Details

• Personal Author:
  Gibbins, John D. ; Grant, Michael P.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  The Health Hazard Evaluation Program received a confidential employee request from a veterinary specialty hospital. The requestors were concerned about possible exposures to chemotherapy drugs and zoonotic diseases for employees working in the chemotherapy administration area. During our visit, we observed outpatient chemotherapy treatment for ten patients and we observed where chemotherapy drugs were received, stored, administered, and disposed. Additionally, we (1) reviewed employer training materials and work-related illness and injury logs and reports
  
  (2) held confidential interviews with employees who discussed work and medical histories, health and safety training and awareness, and perceptions about the work environment
  
  and (3) collected surface wipe samples for several chemotherapy drugs. We found no chemotherapy drugs on any tested surfaces in the chemotherapy administration area. We detected cyclophosphamide on the floor just outside the chemotherapy administration area. Employees did not report any health concerns or symptoms related to handling and administering chemotherapy to patients, nor did they report prior known infection from a variety of zoonotic diseases. Standard operating procedures for handling hazardous drugs provide adequate guidance on safe techniques in preparing, administering, and disposing of hazardous drugs as well as managing chemotherapy drug spills. New employees went through a comprehensive chemotherapy training program. We recommended management require all employees handling chemotherapy drugs to wear the appropriate protective gloves and provide face shields in place of respirators to facilitate splash protection during chemotherapy administration. Additionally, we recommended management begin comparable refresher training for employees who began work prior to the establishment of the new employee comprehensive chemotherapy training program.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Animals Environmental Exposure Health Personnel Health Promotion Neoplasms Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Staff Development Veterinarians Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Animal Healthcare Chemotherapy Diseases Drugs Employees Exposure Levels Hazardous Drugs Healthcare Health Programs Humans Injuries Oncology OSHA Region 4 Personal Protection Personal Protective Equipment PPE Risk Factors Safety Education Sampling Specialty Hospital Training Veterinary Clinic Veterinary Services Work Environment Workers

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• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 2016-0231-3354, 2019 Aug ; :1-25
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE201602313354
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  South Carolina ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  32 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Beaucham, Catherine C. ; Booher, Donald E. ; Hamilton, Cheryl ; Moore, Kevin ; Watts, Shawna
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20056971
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2019-101382
• Citation:
  NIOSH [2019]. Evaluation of chemotherapy drug exposure in a veterinary specialty ; hospital. By Grant MP, Gibbins J. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and ; Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for ; Occupational Safety and Health, Health Hazard Evaluation Report 2016-0231-3354,
• CAS Registry Number:
  Cyclophosphamide (CAS RN 50-18-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2019
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  541940 - Veterinary Services - (NAICS)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:985ca38774924737278c91459845ca157e557d2c4e05388a0bd9dc48394443084e0f2ec00bb0d42ea76eca86e3743779e925703411158a6bd98be9eebd1b073a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172338/cdc_172338_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.08 MB ]