Risk and Safety Management

University of Maine System (UMS) Risk and Safety Management (RSM), in partnership with the UMaine Office of Research Compliance (ORC), works with researchers to encourage and support the safety of employees throughout the state and beyond. Risk and Safety Management supports the research community in a multitude of ways including working with UMaine and UMS Human Resources (HR) and the UMaine researcher’s chain of command.

Some more detailed examples include: examining job descriptions with HR, assisting supervisors with the evaluation of the health and safety checklists, conducting site visits for Principal Investigators, performing client observations for the Office of Research Compliance, reviewing Fieldwork Hazard Assessments and Safety Plans, answering specialized or unique occupational safety training questions for personnel, and monitoring chemical purchases behind the scenes. RSM supports the UMaine chain of command by remaining active on organized committees (e.g., UMaine Radiation Safety Committee, Institutional Biosafety Committee, and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee) which help link the compliance structure between the campus and the system.

In addition to the aforementioned activities, RSM also receives Proposal Approval Routing System (PARS) notifications surrounding specialized or unique concerns that UMaine research has chosen to address directly. Some examples are:

  • The use of radioactive isotopes (e.g., benchtop or field work), equipment containing radioactive materials (sealed sources), or ionizing radiation-producing equipment (e.g., electron microscopes, x-ray equipment)
  • The use of Class 3b or 4 lasers
  • Activities which require medical evaluations for potential exposure to Particularly Hazardous Substances as defined in the UMS Chemical Hygiene Plan Template and Guide (UMS login required), specific Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulated substances (e.g., lead, asbestos), and pesticides (e.g., acute toxicity single exposure category 1 and 2)
  • Any project activities involve human underwater activities (scuba diving, hookah diving, or breath-hold/free diving)
  • Activities where respiratory protection (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus, elastomeric or filtering face piece respirators) are necessary due to health exposures or lack of engineering controls (chemical fume hoods) in place
  • Activities which have excessive noise in excess of 85 decibels (dB) (e.g., having to shout or raise your voice when within 6 feet of another person)
  • Activities which require interaction with human blood (external link), tuberculosis (external link), wild animals, possible exposure to zoonotic diseases (PDF) (external link) and infectious material
  • Activities which require special Safety Training (UMS login required)
  • Activities which generate hazardous waste paid for through indirect cost recovery

RSM may reach out by way of automatic emails through PARS or directly from RSM. The guidance and suggestions provided in those communications are only as good as the information you provide as an input to PARS. If you are working with the concerns above and have had no contact with RSM within 3 weeks after submitting your research proposal, contact Risk and Safety Management at sem@maine.edu. It is especially important to verify that the RSM recommendations have been completed prior to grant award to prevent interruptions or postponements to your research. If you are working with the noted concerns above, and not involved with PARS, you should also be proactively communicating with your chain of command and RSM.

For more information (such as Policies/Guidance/Programs, training information, and RSM Staff), please visit the Risk and Safety Management webpage (UMS login required).