WHO BSL3 Guidelines

With a concrete understanding that MRSA can be a very serious threat to public health as well as the researchers’ safety, we have followed the most strict rules and guidelines during the experiment. Since MRSA pose an increased risk of aerosol spread, we have observed the strengthened safety guidelines that the lab of Gacheon Medical School implements. Some of our experiments are categorized as WHO (World Health Organization) Biosafety Level 3. MRSA is categorized as WHO Risk Group 3 (High individual risk, low community risk: A pathogen that usually causes serious human or animal disease but does not ordinarily spread), so all experiments involved MRSA must be conducted in labs of Biosafety Level 3 (or higher). We followed the WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual in addition to the national standards. We followed the guidelines for WHO Biosafety Level 3 labs when conducting experiments involving MRSA, but we used guidelines for WHO Biosafety Level 2 labs when conducting experiments not involving MRSA. All WHO biosafety Level 2 guidelines overlapped with the general lab safety rules we followed, so I did not include any Biosafety Level 2 guidelines here. Also, I did not include any Biosafety Level 3 guidelines that overlapped with the general lab safety rules.

The international biohazard warning symbol and sign displayed on laboratory access doors must identify the biosafety level and the name of the laboratory supervisor who controls access, and indicate any special conditions for entry into the area, e.g. immunization.

Door with Biohazard symbol

We cannot access the lab without supervision of the instructor or mentor. When we conduct Biosafety Level 3 experiments, we must wear wrap-around gowns, scrub suits, or coveralls, head covering, and shoe covers. We must take off the laboratory protective clothing after the experiments and send it to the decontamination facility in the Gacheon Medical Center.

Double doors

Student in front of double doors

Open manipulations of all potentially infectious material must be conducted within a biological safety cabinet or other primary containment device.

Biosafety cabinet

Laboratory Design and Facilities

Isolation of laboratory

Room sealable for decontamination

Ventilation –inward airflow, controlled ventilating system, HEPA-filtered air exhaust

Double-door entry

Anteroom

Effluent treatment

Autoclave –on site, in laboratory room, double-ended

Biological safety cabinets

Personal safety monitoring capability