Environmental Monitoring Services

Federal and local agencies are keeping an increasingly sharp eye on employee exposure to hazardous chemicals at healthcare facilities worldwide. Non-compliance risks steep fines and stiff penalties, not to mention compromised worker safety.

Praxair Healthcare Services offers you a full line of testing and remediation services to help you measure, monitor and control employee exposure and indoor air quality throughout your facility – ensuring compliance with the regulations of Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), The Joint Commision, Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), College of American Pathology (CAP), National

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For more information or a needs assessment and cost estimate, contact your Praxair Healthcare Services representative or call toll-free at 1-800-PRAXAIR today.

Institute for Occupational, Safety and Health (NIOSH), and American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH).

Our services include:

Laboratory/ancillary site chemical monitoring

	-	Formaldehyde, outline, xylene
	-	Any other OSHA Z Table chemical

Hood certification

Operating room waste gas monitoring

	-	N₂O
	-	Halogenated agents

Isolation room testing

Negative/positive pressure testing

Central sterile

	-	Ethylene oxide
	-	Glutaraldehyde

Work practice evaluation

Safety equipment and products

	-	Dosimeter badges
	-	Spill kits
	-	Personal protective equipment

Indoor air quality

	-	Ambient air screening
	-	Bacteriological sampling
	-	Ventilation testing

Employee exposure monitoring
Praxair specialists can perform on-site monitoring for hazardous gases including:

	»	Nitrous oxide and halogenated agents in the operating room, obstetrics, and recovery room
	»	Ethylene oxide in the central sterile department
	»	Glutaraldehyde in central sterile or other use points such as respiratory and endoscopy departments
	»	Formaldehyde, xylene, and toluene in laboratory areas

Our site assessment documents safe levels in accordinace with OSHA requirements. The presence of Praxair technicians shows your employees that you care about their health and safety on the job. We also provide the documentation required for The Joint Commission surveys.

Environmental surveys measure air quality and determine TWA (time waited average), STEL (short-term exposure levels), and peak exposure levels. Badges, capable of detecting over 100 OSHA-regulated chemicals, can be provided for interim passive monitoring between inspections.

The Praxair team can also assist you when any corrective actions are required. We provide a variety of solutions to reduce employee exposure including safe work and safety station inspections.

Indoor air quality
If an employee says "There's a funny smell in my work space" or "Something at work is making me sick," what do you do?

Praxair can perform an IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) audit to determine whether there is a real problem, pinpoint its source, suggest solutions, and – if you like – implement the corrective measures you choose to take. Our audit can include all areas where indoor air quality is likely to be suspect.

An IAQ problem can exist from a variety of causes. Our Praxair Technicians are trained in OSHA and NIOSH methodology and are OSHA 501 compliant. Isolation room flow rates are tested in accordance with Center for Disease Control (CDC) and DHHS recommendations. Praxair keeps written records of every inspection for 30 years as required by OSHA.

Hood certification
Faulty or inadequate ventilation systems are a common violations cited by OSHA. Chemical fume hoods, biological laminar flow hoods, and other hoods can be periodically inspected and certified as required by CAP.

Our hood inspectors are licensed and certified to inspect and repair laboratory hoods in your state. Hood adjust and high-efficiency, particulate arresting (HEPA) filter replacement are performed in accordance with manufacturer specifications and federal standard 209E.