Industrywide Studies Report No. IWS-67-31, A Walk-Through Survey Of Becton, Dickinson And Company, Incorporated, Canaan, Connecticut.

Greife-A; Stayner-L

NIOSH 1985 Sep:22 pages

00153685

A walk through survey was conducted at Becton, Dickinson and Company, Incorporated (SIC-3841), Canaan, Connecticut in September, 1984. The purpose of the survey was to determine the feasibility of including the facility in a NIOSH industry wide mortality/industrial hygiene study of ethylene-oxide (75218). The company used 100 percent ethylene-oxide to sterilize 95 to 98 percent of its product, disposable plastic syringes. The rest were sterilized by cobalt-60 irradiation. The company maintained adequate personnel records to identify workers potentially exposed to ethylene-oxide. The facility could contribute approximately 25,000 person/years to the NIOSH study. Industrial hygiene sampling for ethylene-oxide had been conducted since 1981. All employees were instructed in proper practices for working with ethylene-oxide. The manufacturing, molding, office and laboratory areas had separate recirculating, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. The sterilization area which had its own ventilation system was maintained under negative pressure, relative to the rest of the building. The authors conclude that the facility is eligible for inclusion in the NIOSH study. Recommendations include conducting industrial hygiene sampling in areas where data does not exist and evaluating ventilation in the link area.

NIOSH-Author; NIOSH-Survey; Field-study; Medical-equipment; Physiology; Biological-effects; Physiological-measurements; Workplace-studies; IWS-67-31; Region-1;

75-21-8;

19850924

1985

PB86-135613

A03

IWS-67-31

DSHEFS;

3841;

Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations and Field Studies, NIOSH, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Cincinnati, Ohio, Report No. IWS-67-31, 22 pages, 24 references

CT; OH;