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Memory spine: Identify, Check, Control, Protect, Respond, Report

• Identify: be clear which substance or process you are handling.
• Check: read labels, safety data sheets, product instructions and your local COSHH procedures.
• Control: follow the assessed method, observe storage rules, and use ventilation, extraction and correct waste routes.
• Protect: wear task-specific PPE and use appropriate skin protection.
• Respond: safeguard people first and follow the spill or exposure procedure.
• Report: record missing labels, unsafe storage, symptoms, spills, exposures and near misses.

What COSHH covers

• COSHH applies to substances and processes that can harm health via skin contact, eye splashes, inhalation, ingestion, injection injury or biological exposure.
• Examples in optical practice include cleaning products, disinfectants, alcohols, contact-lens solutions, peroxide systems, aerosols, lens-edging dust, workshop products, contaminated tissues, body-fluid waste and spillages.
• Support staff should follow local controls and ask a manager or competent person when unsure; formal assessment and review remain the manager's responsibility.

Labels, SDSs and controls

• Do not use unknown or unlabelled products.
• A safety data sheet informs a COSHH assessment but does not replace local task-based controls.
• Apply the hierarchy of control: eliminate or substitute where possible, control the process, use safe systems, then use PPE where needed.
• Do not mix cleaning products, disinfectants or lens-care products unless the local procedure explicitly permits it.
• Store substances in suitable labelled containers, away from food and drink, patient-facing stock, heat and public access where required.

PPE, skin and incidents

• PPE must match the task and the hazard. Thin disposable gloves are not suitable for every chemical.
• Remove contaminated PPE after the task and wash hands afterwards.
• Report skin dryness, cracking, itching, rash, breathing difficulty, eye irritation or headaches linked to substances or processes.
• In a spill or exposure, protect people first, identify the substance if it is safe to do so, follow the local procedure, escalate and record the incident.
• Laboratory and workshop processes need process controls as well as product labelling because cutting, polishing or spraying can create dust, mist or vapour.

For the assessment, concentrate on recognising COSHH hazards, checking labels and SDSs, following local controls, using PPE correctly, safe storage, spill response and reporting.