ANNUAL NEWSLETTER
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| Instructor Spotlight: Jim Wagner | |
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BSL3 Seminar Series: Exciting Changes for 2013
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Our spring BLS3 Seminar Series, held in Scottsdale, AZ for six years, is moving! In 2013 the courses will be held in Raleigh, NC, at the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health's brand-new facility. "BSL3 Facilities: Design, Construction and Beyond" will be April 22-23, and "Advanced BSL3 Work Practices and Procedures" will be held April 24-25.
Here's what's new (besides the location):
- For the "Facilities" course - hands-on activities in the training lab, and behind-the scenes tour of the new lab building
- For the "Practices and Procedures" course - more time in the lab and more advanced, in-depth content, with an emphasis on the senior level competencies in CDC's "Guidelines for Biosafety Laboratory Competency" published in April, 2011.
However, some things haven't changed - attendees will still experience two days of intensely interactive in-depth information provided by instructors with years of experience and many "lessons learned" to share.
Lodging for the courses will be at the nearby Embassy Suites Raleigh Crabtree, conveniently located near the lab and the Raleigh-Durham International Airport.
Visit www.eagleson.org/BSL3 for more information, or to register.
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Eagleson Institute's comprehensive global training programs moved to new levels in 2012, when we expanded our program to include mentoring recently-trained certifiers in Panama, Russia, Dominican Republic and Kenya. In the process, we learned a great deal about the challenges these new certifiers face, as well as the nuances of teaching a highly technical skill in a variety of different cultures. As a result, we have developed more extensive ways of evaluating our students and have developed strategies for working with countries to establish a sustainable certification program.
Read the Article |
Website
We spent the better part of 2012 developing a brand-new, easier to use website. The new site launched shortly before the holidays. Check it out at www.eagleson.org and let us know what you think!
2013 ProgramsWe have many exciting programs in the works for 2013. To see a complete listing, please visit www.eagleson.org/2013.
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Science and Safety in Seattle
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2013's "Preventing and Treating Biological Exposures: An Occupational Health Colloquium" will be held June 19-21, 2013, in Seattle, WA, in conjunction with "Facilitating Safe and Secure Science: Practical Approaches for IBCs," the biennial conference featuring NIH-OBA, to be held June 16-18. These two events were last held back-to-back in 2011 in San Diego.
Preliminary information for both events is available online; more information will be added as planning progresses. However, if you plan to attend the Occupational Health Colloquium, act quickly. Eagleson staff were astounded when last June's "Preventing and Treating Biological Exposures: An Occupational Health Colloquium" sold out before the early-bird deadline! The colloquium is deliberately kept small to facilitate the exchange of ideas among the participants.
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Eagleson Institute Honor Society
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Eagleson Institute has an Honor Society for those who have attended five or more classes. This year there were nine inductees! Congratulations to:
- Ellis Flack, Service Technician, Balcon Lab Safety, Council Bluffs, IA
- Lilian Rios, Industrial Mechanical Engineer, Gorgas Institute, Panama
- Don Bartelson, Sr. Engineer, Lockheed Martin, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL
- Bryan Ong, Technical Manager, Intersourcing Tech Pte. Ltd, Singapore
- Timothy Travers, Biosafety Certifier, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
- Michael Klann, Medical Technology Associates, Largo, FL
- Brian Nunley, TAB Tech, Systems Commissioning Inc, Houston, TX
- Jacob Varisco, Service Rep, Allometrics, Seabrook, TX
- Roger Coffey, Allometrics, Seabrook, TX
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High School Laboratory Safety
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A half-day teacher training course taught by Eagleson Institute's Executive Director, Mary Ann Sondrini and noted biosafety consultant Jonathan Richmond, Ph.D., in February provided Loudoun County, Virginia, high school science teachers with both information and teaching techniques they can use to instruct their students on the safe and effective use of biosafety cabinets. Yes, high school students in several school districts around the country have biosafety cabinets in their labs! Loudon County administrators explained to Eagleson that a number of their students are conducting research using recombinant DNA or doing other biotechnology work that requires the cabinets, and that many science teachers had backgrounds in other areas of science, and were not familiar with safety cabinet design, use, and maintenance.
Dr. Richmond commented that the Loudoun County teachers were extraordinarily receptive and very appreciative. Mary Ann Sondrini was struck with how enthusiastic they were. Most of the 20+ course attendees had little or no experience with safety cabinets, and were very aware they needed the training. The few attendees who did have a biological research background commented that they learned much more about the workings of the cabinets than they had known before.
Dr. Richmond and Mary Ann Sondrini learned something too: as research continues to be pushed down from higher education to high schools, the need for understanding biosafety is being pushed down as well. As Dr. Richmond points out, providing biosafety cabinets without instruction in biosafety is like handing a child a bicycle, then turning them loose without teaching them to ride. In both cases, accidents can happen!
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Eagleson Institute Gets Healthier
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Inspired by presentations at the Healthier Federal Workers Conference, which Eagleson Institute helped organize, Executive Director Mary Ann Sondrini and the rest of the staff have taken small but meaningful steps to a healthier workplace and lifestyle. Staff members take turns using an inexpensive stability ball instead of their office chairs for an hour or so a day, to help mitigate health risks associated with sedentary work. Using the ball can improve posture, strengthen core muscles, and burn additional calories as the body shifts to maintain balance.
In addition, inspired by the healthy food provided at the conference, staff members are:
- "Sauteeing" vegetables by putting them in a hot pan, then spraying them with oil to reduce the amount of oil the veggies absorb during cooking.
- Cooking in liquids (stock, wine, lemon juice, fruit juice, water) instead of oil.
- Using pesto, salsas, and chutneys instead of sour cream, butter or creamy sauces.
If you plan on attending an Eagleson class in 2013, you'll probably notice healthier (yet still delicious) lunch options. One thing you won't be able to see: if you talk to someone in our office, he or she may be sitting on a stability ball or standing up to take your phone call. It's just another way to be more active!
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PO Box 954
Sanford, ME 04073
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