In an R1 research university, high stress placed on research productivity can risk overshadowing the importance of a positive safety culture. Due to a recent settlement agreement related to the fatal UCLA lab fire incident in 2008, all UC schools began implementing increased safety measures. With any new safety requirements, one of the biggest challenges is ensuring researchers actually follow the new regulations. It is hypothesized that lack of compliance is correlated to researcher’s respect and understanding of safety regulations. To investigate this, research has been conducted to gauge researcher’s opinions on safety regulations with the ultimate goal of increasing compliance. This information emphasizes the importance of having graduate representatives (Safety Officers) who can communicate best practices and other safety rules and recommendations in an approachable manner. Methods to aid safety officers in hazard assessment and safety training are discussed.

Successfully implementing a positive safety culture in an R1 research laboratory as a graduate safety officer

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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