Biological Safety Manual
The purpose of this manual is to provide guidelines for the safe handling of infectious agents at Swarthmore College (the College).
The College intends to comply with all aspects of biosafety practice presented by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and US Department of Health and Human Services in the latest published editions of Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories and the NIH Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant or Synthetic Nucleic Acid Molecules. Many of the guidelines found in the manual are mandated by federal regulations issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Procedures for decontamination and disposal of regulated medical wastes are mandated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
All College staff, faculty, and students that work with hazardous or potentially hazardous biological agents must familiarize themselves with the contents of this manual and conduct their laboratory work in accordance with the appropriate containment level.The Biological Safety Manual has been created to provide the biohazard user with basic safety information regarding their handling, storage, and disposal.
