Department of Environmental Health & Safety

- Biosafety Overview
- - Biosafety Training
    General biosafety training is required by all individuals conducting research on the UNMC/UNO campuses that involve biohazardous materials.
  - Biohazard Waste
    Biohazardous waste, also called infectious waste or biomedical waste, is any waste containing infectious materials or potentially infectious substances.
  - Biosafety Resources
    Find links to Biosafety resources, guidelines and references.
  - Department Contact List
    Find the right person to contact in our department to answer your questions or concerns.
- - Report a Safety Concern
    Use this form to report a safety concern or an incident. If there is an emergency or an incident happening now, call Public Safety at 402-559-5555 or call 911 immediately.
  - Incident Reporting
    UNMC employees, students, and volunteers are required to complete a UNMC Incident Report for all accidents/incidents involving injury.
  - Biosafety Contacts
    We offer a list of contacts for biosafety concerns. If you are concerned for the immediate health and safety of yourself or others, please contact Public Safety Dispatch at 402-559-5555 or go to the Emergency Department for care.
- Chemical Safety Overview
- - Chemical Safety Training
    Chemical safety training courses focus on training individuals how to safely handle and store chemicals.
  - Resources
    Find information from fact sheets and safety data sheets to safety plans and policies.
  - Inventories and Signage
    Learn how to provide information to emergency response personnel through chemical inventories and signs for laboratory doors.
  - Labeling
    To meet the EPA regulations of chemical labeling, templates are available to individuals to print and use within their laboratories.
- - Fact Sheets
    Our Hazardous Material Fact Sheets provide a quick reference to guide as you generate and dispose of these items.
  - Shipping and Transportation
    UNMC and Nebraska Medicine complies with regulations of several federal agencies regarding the shipment and transport of hazardous materials and dangerous goods.
  - Methylene Chloride Use
    Learn about our timeline and actions for complying with the EPA's new rule on the use of Methylene Chloride.
  - Waste Pick-ups
    We provide pick-ups for batteries and chemical and radiation waste.
- Laboratory Safety Overview
- Lab Signs
  To assist emergency response teams, we provide laboratory signs based on inventories and worksheets submitted to us.
- References and Resources
  We have developed a variety of laboratory safety resources to assist research laboratories to be in compliance with federal, state and university requirements.
- Lab Safety Manual
  The UNMC Lab Safety Manual guides lab leaders and research teams in the evaluation and control of chemical and physical hazards.
- Audit Guide
  Lab safety audits are conducted on an annual basis and scheduled through our department.
- Occupational Health & Safety Overview
- - Safety Training
    Safety training is the process of educating individuals about potential hazards, safe practices, emergency procedures and guidelines for maintaining a safe working environment.
  - Safety Data Sheets
    This resource is available to employees through the UNMC intranet.
  - Safety Committees
    Department representatives are available to hear concerns and share them with the committee for recommendations.
  - Policies, Plans & Guidelines
    The UNMC Safety program includes the development and maintenance of an effective, written Injury, Illness and Prevention Program.
- - Animal Contact
    Find employee health and other requirements for employees who will work with animals.
  - Ergonomics
    Find help with work stations and work sites to increase productivity and enhance safety, health and comfort with a specific focus on the interaction between the human and equipment.
  - Indoor Air Quality
    Find resources for common causes of indoor air quality complaints, the steps taken in response, and tips for avoiding the problems.
  - Medical Surveillance Policy
    The purpose of the medical surveillance program is to evaluate the health of employees related to their potential occupational exposures to hazardous agents.
- Radiation Safety Overview
- Laser Safety
  Find information about requirements for the use of lasers and laser systems at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine.
- Radiation Dosimetry
  Find forms and other resources for those at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine working with ionizing radiation.
- Radiation Safety Training
  Radiation Safety training requirements are based upon worker category type. For most workers, initial and annual refresher training are required.
- Resources
  Find resources to support safety in research involving radioactive materials and radiation-generating machines at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine.
- Radiation Waste Pickups
  Submit this form to request a pickup of radiation waste at UNMC and Nebraska Medicine.
- Radiation Safety Manual
  The rules and procedures set forth in our Radiation Safety Manual have one single, straightforward purpose—to protect UNMC patients, employees, and the public against unnecessary and potentially harmful radiation exposure. Link will open a PDF.

Radiation Safety

We manage radioactive material and the use of radiation at UNMC, in accordance with requirements of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

We also oversee the use of radioactive material and radiation use at Nebraska Medicine. Additional services include:

Responding to spills and releases on a 24-hour basis.
Conducting internal radiation safety audits.
Maintaining databases to comply with the record-keeping requirement mandated by the regulations.
Maintaining the Radiation Health Center for the local nuclear power plants.
Managing the personnel radiation monitoring program (e.g., radiation badging, bioassays) for UNMC and Nebraska Medicine.

A worker holds a vial of radioactive material.

Radiation Safety Manual

Ionizing radiation is among the most versatile and useful tools of modern medicine and biomedical research. Like many other instruments of medicine and research, ionizing radiation is potentially hazardous unless used with strict adherence to safety rules and procedures.

The rules and procedures set forth in our Radiation Safety Manual have one single, straightforward purpose—to protect UNMC patients, employees, and the public against unnecessary and potentially harmful radiation exposure.

Read the Manual