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ON-SITE LASER SAFETY AUDITS
COMPLIANCE REVIEW
ANSI STANDARDS & THE JOINT COMMISSION SURVEY PREPARATION
Required by ANSI 136.3 standards, and recommended annually
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ANSI 136.3 Safe Use of Lasers in Health Care
Facilities:
FACILITY AND EQUIPMENT
SAFETY AUDITS (Class IIB and Class IV)
A Laser Safety Audit of the facility and personnel safety
features (e.g. eyewear, barriers, area controls, plume removal,
warning signs, etc.) and equipment safety features (interlocks,
labels, etc) shall be conducted and documented under the supervision
of the LSO. The frequency shall be determined by the LSO (recommended
annual inspection).
JOINT COMMISSION SURVEY PREPARATION
- This On-Site ANSI Safety Compliance Review will identify any
weaknesses in your Laser Safety Program in preparation for the
un-announced Joint Commission Surveys.
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These Safety Audits are performed by our training partner,
Rockwell Laser Industries.
Please contact Rockwells Education
Director, Leah Cridln, for quotes:
lcridlin@rli.com
Tel:
513.272.9902 |
ON- SITE LASER SAFETY COMPLIANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES -
It is our goal to assess the
facility’s complete Laser Safety Program to ensure its compliance with the
ANSI 136.3 (American National Standards Institute) recommendations for the
Safe Use of Lasers in Health Care Facilities, and to make any
recommendations or implement any corrective actions to bring the program
into such compliance. Such assessment will focus on the Administrative,
Procedural and Engineering Controls of the laser safety program. We will
address the medical laser patient safety issues in order to assist your
facility in The Joint Commission Survey preparation.
FAQ:What's
this about an Annual Laser Safety Audit, and why do I need one?
A: In order to be in compliance with
the American National Standards Institute Z136.3 Standard for the Safe Use
of Lasers in Health Care Facilities, the Laser Safety Officer that
administers the overall safety program is required to periodically conduct
a formal, written audit of that program. The requirement is periodically
"as determined by the LSO", but they recommend it annually. This is a
formal assessment and review of your entire program including written
laser safety policies and procedures, credentialing requirements, review
of incident reports and inspection of all laser and related equipment.
Your own LSO may perform this, or we do offer this as a consulting service
to your facility.
Failure to maintain such written
safety audits may have various implications. The Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (OSHA) has federal enforcement capability to levy
large fines against employers who fail to maintain a safe work
environment, and failure to have such periodic safety audits on file would
be evidence of negligence. The Joint Commission reviews the structure of
Medical Laser Safety programs for compliance with ANSI, and a medical
facility could be found deficit in this area with no audits on file. In
any malpractice litigation that may arise from laser cases, prosecuting
attorneys may require documentation of the formal laser safety program
including the periodic audits. Lack of such documentation could lend
credence to claims of negligence against the facility. The most important
reason to conduct periodic safety audits however is the simple ethical
obligation that employers have to keep their employees safe. The Laser
Safety Audit is a formalized and systematic way to ensure this.
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