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Medical gases, anaesthetic rooms and pregnant workers
Rank: Super forum user 
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Hi all
I am well aware of the need to carry out risk assessment for pregnant workers - based on risk assessment etc. In the operating theatres where my wife works, patients are mainly unconscious when being operated on other than for small procedures. The gases used to make patients unconscious in the anaesthetic room(prior to the patient going into the theatre proper) are suctioned away when they exhale so no-one in the room breathes the patient's expelled anaesthetic gases. But when the procedure is complete and the gases are no longer required to keep the patient 'under', the machine has its pipes disconnected, and at this point some miniscule amount of anaesthetic gas escapes into the room. There is no seperate air cleaning system in the anaesthetic room, but staff have no issue and continue to work happily, with no recorded examples of ill-health as a result of this gas entering the general room atmosphere.
Until now, when a pregnant anaesthetic nurse is refusing to work in the room as she does not want to risk inhaling any expelled anaesthetic gases. The unit has worked since January 1996 and there have been at least 20 pregnant staff working in that area during that time with no issues. I understand that just that no-one has been injured in the past that it is automatically safe but RA's are in place and it is considered very low risk.
Anyone come across this before?
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Hi Martin - have not come across this but I well understand how women change their attitudes to safety if it may impact on their unborn. And I totally agree with this.
I am fortunate that my wife had 2 healthy babies, but some of our friends have not been so lucky and I have heard them discuss "what if, remember that" etc and it is hell for them.
I remember a discussion on this forum last year - you will probably remeber it - where a pregnant lady was being asked to change her job role because she was pregnant but was fighting against it.
My advice to you - if you were asked in a court of law - was there uncontrolled anaesthetic gases in the work area which the woman and her unborn was exposed to? If the answer was yes - the fact there had been no reported issues so far would not be a good defence.
I would look to relocate the lady to be on the safe side.
This is not an area where you can plan and expext a result IMHO.
Regards
David
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Rank: Forum user 
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The Royal College of Anaesthetists and the Association for Perioperative Practice both have a keen interest in this subject, and together take a major role in setting standards, both serive standards for residual concentrations and safety standards for exposure rates, precautionary exclusions etc.
The individual concerned should contact one or other organisation, preferably that which is appropriate for their career - and better to be a member than not. The DoH also provide generic guidance an in many ways might be the final arbiter of what is the appropriate course of employment action
Ian
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Rank: Super forum user
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Gentlemen
thankyou. Ian, the AfPP guidelines have already been reviewed, and anaesthetic guidelines have also been reviewed, both by guidance and by opinion of female consultant anaesthetists, who also undertook their work within the same room whilst pregnant, knowing better than most what they were doing, as their work often had them directly above the unconscious patients who were exhaling. The lady in question works ten hours per week which diminishes even more the risk of exposure. It is a question of whether the person is using this as an excuse.
It is appreciated that the person cannot work in Recovery due to other noted risks.
David H - thanks. I do not know if this will ever get to a court of law, as risk assessments have been rigorously completed and have been reviewed by unions and occi health and the work goes on.
This comes to the issue of risk assessment here really. All pregnant workers have been risk assessed and there are no factors for this person which are indicative of her having higher risk than others who have continued to work within the anaesthetic room during induction. Refusal is the issue, the reason of which is not supported by the risk assessment. That is the problem, but again, have you come across this before?
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Rank: Super forum user
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http://www.osha.gov/dts/...heticgases/index.html#C1I have come across this before durintg risk assessment in South African Hospitals for pregnant workers although I can't seem to find any UK ref here is a link to the US OSHA stuff which should help. Cheers Steve
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