Electrical Shock During Phone Assisted Troubleshooting of Laboratory Equipment

Abstract

Researchers have the potential to be exposed to a wide variety of hazards inherent to the equipment they use and maintain. When equipment does not function as expected, researchers sometimes reach out to their vendors for assistance. Early diagnostic or troubleshooting interactions between researcher and vendor are often conducted over the telephone and can lead to researchers performing work outside of their area of expertise and exposure to unknown hazards. This type of interaction significantly contributed to an incident where during diagnostic activities a researcher accidentally contacted, and discharged, a capacitor in an X-ray diffraction instrument. While this incident did not produce a serious injury, if the capacitor discharge path had occurred hand-to-hand across the heart, a serious injury may have been possible.

Shifting Culture from Blame to Gain: Challenges and Encouragements

“…In addition to chemical incidents, one article describes an incident involving equipment malfunction. Wright et al describe an electrical shock event that occurred during a phone-assisted troubleshooting on an X-ray diffraction instrument. This incident provided an opportunity for the organization to review its electrical safety awareness system and training, including identifying and training electrical safety advisors that serve as embedded personnel to help assess and mitigate electrical hazards.…”