SAFETY SEMINAR SMASHING SUCCESS

One side of the room is doing a fair job humming the Sunrise Suite from Peer Gynt by Grieg. At the same time the other side is doing an awful job with the theme from the movie Jaws. Wait a minute! Don't they know this is supposed to be a safety seminar?

Yes! That is a frog he is holding.

A most unusual safety seminar to say the least. More than eighty students and faculty gave up their respective Saturday routines in order to attend Dr. Kaufman's program entitled "Safety in the Academic Laboratory." And judging from the evaluation forms, every attendee was greatly surprised by how much fun learning about lab safety could be.

"I never expected to be entertained and to learn so much. Thank you."

On March first, the EH&S department hosted Dr. James N. Kaufman, President of the Laboratory Safety Institute, Natick, MA, for a special experimental seminar. Kaufman and EH&S staff wanted to test the effective difference between brief pre-lab safety instructions and a day-long "megadose" of lab safety training. Kaufman used a toxicological analogy for the test: "One-tenth of an aspirin per week won't cure a headache, but how much at once would be too much?"

"This is just so much more effective than just watching videos and reading reams of safety rules. I was engrossed the entire 6+ hours and will recommend this program to other places I have worked in the past."

Based on immediate responses, the class would have liked an even larger dose. The secret to this success, of course, was Dr. Kaufman's combination of knowledge and teaching style.

"Excellent: Believes in what he's doing and it comes across." "Informative, interesting, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, ..." "Jim is one of the best presenters I have ever had for any kind of instruction."

The EH&S Department will try to measure the staying power of this training method and find ways to reinforce Kaufman's messages. If it can be arranged, we will also try to get the popular chemist/magician/musician/humorist back for a return engagement.

Ninety-four people signed up for the program: about 75% from UNR, 20% from Washoe County School District, and 5% from DRI, TMCC or elsewhere. About half of the attendees were graduate students. Forty percent of student attendees came from UNR's Chemistry Department.

Safety in Academica Laboratories

Dr. James Kaufman for the University of Nevada

Reno, Nevada, March 1, 1997

EXCERPTS FROM EVALUATION FORMS:

Content:

• "Clearly the most comprehensive safety seminar or course I have ever attended. Even though I have taken several safety courses and read many texts on lab safety, I learned a tremendous amount of up to date information."

Instructor:

• "Excellent: Believes in what he's doing and it comes across."
• "Informative, interesting, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, appeals to broad range of audience interests."
• "Jim is one of the best presenters I have ever had for any kind of instruction."

Food and Facilities:

• "Great! Healthier than the usual seminar."
• "Good and Nutritious."

How will today's seminar affect your work in the lab this semester?

• "I will require more vigilance, both of myself and my coworkers, and will try to act as a better role model for those working under me."

How would you compare what you've learned about lab safety in pre-lab briefings with today's seminar?

• "Even though our lab has a safety manual and a series of safety videos, a lot of today's information was new. This is the best safety training I've had to date."
• "This is just so much more effective than just watching videos and reading reams of safety rules. I was engrossed the entire 6+ hours and will recommend this program to other places I have worked in the past."

Other Comments:

• "I never expected to be entertained and to learn so much. Thank you."
• "What a wonderful showman! Great program."

A Special Thanks to the Program Cosponsors

UNR Graduate Student Association
Center For Environmental Science and Engineering