Graduate student Austin Moyle will serve as a guest editor for a special issue of ACS Chemical Health & Safety: Shifting Culture from Blame to Gain: A Call for Chemical Incident Case Studies.
For a special issue of ACS Chemical Health & Safety, Shifting Culture from Blame to Gain: A Call for Chemical Incident Case Studies, guest editor Austin Moyle is calling for papers on incidents and near misses with the aim of reducing stigma around lab incidents.
"As chemists, we are expected to be familiar with the hazards of chemicals, processes, and apparatuses associated with our work. Whether in industry, academia, or government, we rely on the information found in standard operating procedures (SOPs), Safety Data Sheets (SDSs), and risk assessments," Moyle and his co-authors noted in their editorial. "When something goes wrong in the lab, the first questions often raised are 'Were you following the SOP?' and 'What does the SDS or risk assessment say?' Sometimes, however, these documents are not enough."
In this unique edition of the ACS journal, graduate student guest editors will take on the task of sharing stories from scientists at all career stages about their own lab safety experiences. By choosing student guest editors, ACS seeks to reinforce the key theme of equality in safety culture and encourage early career scientists to contribute. With increased visibility around safety issues, Moyle hopes to inspire a more open and inclusive safety culture and reduce stigma around lab incidents.
Read the full call for papers from ACS Chemical Health and Safety.
