Emergency Information & Contacts
Emergency Responses, Reporting & Non-Emergency Medical Responses
Emergency Numbers and Flip Chart
Fire (Code Red)
- In the event of fire or smoke, follow the fire plan (R.A.C.E.) and call 911 and the appropriate campus number.
- CRCCharles River Campus: 617-353-2121
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-6666
Medical Emergencies
- External emergency services will be contacted as necessary. When calling, identify yourself, provide a callback phone number, state your exact location, and describe the specific nature of the affliction.
- CRC: 617-353-2121
- BUMC/BMC: 617-358-4444 (non-patient areas)
Hazardous Materials Spill
- Chemical, biological, radioactive
- CRC: 617-353-2105
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-6666
Facility-Related Emergencies
- Floods, utility failures (power outages), other
- CRC: 617-353-2105
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-6666
Emergency Information Line
- Activated during University- and Boston Medical Center-wide emergencies (weather, major fire, utility failure, etc.)
- CRC: 617-358-7233
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-6886
Occupational Health
- Business-hour numbers:
- CRC: 617-353-6630
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-8400
Research Occupational Health Program
- For injuries occurring in laboratories
- CRC: 617-414-7647
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-7647
Environmental Health & Safety
- CRC: 617-353-4094
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-8830
Radiation Safety
- To report radiation safety-related incidents
- CRC: 617-638-5795; enter # 0180
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-7052
Incidents and Injuries: Response and Reporting
What to Do
Call the appropriate emergency number for medical assistance. External emergency medical services will be summoned as necessary. Administer first aid, if properly trained.
In the event of serious injury to an employee:
- Complete the appropriate accident report for employee injuries with supervisor.
- As soon as practical, contact Risk Management and Environmental Health & Safety for reporting procedures and investigations.
- If the accident involves an injury to a student or a visitor, an incident report detailing the incident and injuries should be filled out and sent to Risk Management.
In the event of an incident, near miss, or minor injury to a patient, student, visitor, or employee you should:
- Immediately report all details to your supervisor.
- If the incident warrants, seek medical attention at an onsite occupational health center (see above).
- Complete the appropriate accident report for employee injuries. See chart below.
How to Report
Reporting Contacts
Charles River Campus
- Risk Management: 617-353-3020
- Environmental Health & Safety: 617-353-4094
For laboratory-related exposures:
- Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP)
- 72 East Concord Street, Evans Building, 8th floor
- 617-414-ROHP(7647)
BU Medical Campus
- Risk Management: 617-353-3020
- Environmental Health & Safety: 617-638-8830
For laboratory-related exposures:
- Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP)
- 72 East Concord Street, Evans Building, 8th floor
- 617-414-ROHP(7647)
Reporting Forms
For Boston University Employees
All research-related injuries must be reported to Research Occupational Health Program at 617-414-7647.
For Boston Medical Center Employees
Complete the Employee Accident Reporting Form available on the BMC intranet @Work section.
For those other than BU Employees
For those other than employees, an incident report can be found under the Personal Liability Accidents section on the Risk Management website.
Reporting Near Miss and Other Incidents
Near misses and incidents can be reported to Environmental Health & Safety at 617-353-4094 or by reporting safety concerns using the ObservNow feature in BioRAFT.
BMC incidents must be reported through the STARS Incident Reporting System.
How to Contact Occupational Health Services
Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP): for CRC or BUMC/BMC Laboratory related exposures
- 72 East Concord Street, Evans Building, 8th Floor
- 617-414-ROHP (7647)
- ROHP information
It is important that you call this number immediately if you are bitten or scratched by an animal, if you cut or scratch yourself on animal caging, or if you are experiencing unusual disease or allergy symptoms. Always report incidents to your supervisor.
After hours or on holidays and weekends contact information
Call the Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP) 24/7 at 617-414-7647.
If serious emergency, please go to the Boston Medical Center Emergency Department adjacent to the Medical Campus, 617-414-4075 or go to the nearest hospital emergency room.
Appointments for Medical Services or Concerns
Call the Research Occupational Health Program at 617-414-7647 to arrange for an appointment to be medically cleared for work or other medical consultation.
CRC Occupational Health Center
- 930 Commonwealth Avenue, West (Pleasant Street entrance)
- 617-353-6630
- Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00a.m. – 5:00p.m.
BUMC/BMC Working Well
- 720 Harrison Avenue, Doctor’s Office Building (DOB), 7th floor
- 617-638-8400
- Hours: Monday-Friday, 7:30a.m. – 4:00p.m.
CRC Student Health Services
- 881 Commonwealth Ave.
- 617-353-3575
- After-hours: For urgent medical need, call 617-353- 3575 for the provider on-call. For urgent mental health-related need, call 617-353-3569.
Non-Emergency Medical Situations
For lab exposures (needle sticks, cuts, scratches, splashes, etc) involving infectious agents
Call the ROHP 24/7 number: 1-717-414-ROHP (7647)
You will be connected with a BU Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP) medical provider. ROHP will refer you to the appropriate health care location.
For all animal bites, including those involving animals infected with any hazardous agents
Call the ROHP 24/7 number: 1-617-414-ROHP (7647)
You will be connected with a BU Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP) medical provider. ROHP will refer you to the appropriate health care location.
For unexplained symptoms or illness
Call the ROHP 24/7 number: 1-617-414-ROHP (7647)
You will be connected with a BU Research Occupational Health Program (ROHP) medical provider. ROHP will refer you to the appropriate health care location.
It is important to always inform the physician of your work in the laboratory and the agent(s) that you work with under any of these scenarios.
Provide the wallet-sized agent ID card to the physician.
High-Hazard Materials
Incident and Accident Responses
Chemical Spill
Spill Assistance
- Response: Request assistance
- CRC: 617-353-2105
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-6666
Medical Assistance
- Response: Request assistance
- CRC: 617-353-2121
- BUMC/BMC: 617-358-4444
- identify yourself
- provide a callback phone number
- state exact location
- describe incident details
External emergency services will be contacted as necessary.
- Remove personnel from the immediate area.
- Restrict access to the area and assess the extent of the spill.
- If it is safe to do so, contain the spill. Try to protect hallways, elevator shafts, floor drains, etc.
- Attend to injured personnel as necessary.
- Do not attempt to clean a large chemical spill, a spill beyond your control, a spill that has migrated to drains or hard-to-clean areas, or a spill where clean-up could result in adverse exposure to the spilled chemical.
- Seek assistance from Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) by calling the emergency number above.
If the spill is small, involves a chemical you understand well, has not migrated to drains or difficult-to-clean places, you have the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) and spill cleanup materials, and there is no risk of adverse exposure, then clean the spill.
- Wear PPE appropriate to the chemical spilled. At a minimum: safety glasses, gloves, and appropriate attire.
- Refer to the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for more information on proper PPE.
- Collect spill material and label it as hazardous waste.
- Place in Hazardous Waste Satellite Accumulation Area and make request for pickup.
- Report non-emergency incident to EHS at 617-353-4049 (CRC) or 617-638-8830 (BUMC/BMC).
Or report a ‘near-miss’ incident using the ObservNow feature in BioRAFT (Kerberos log-in required).
Report exposures in a research laboratory
- Response: Report research laboratory exposures to ROHPResearch Occupational Health Program ROHP is part of BU R...
- CRC: 617-414-7647
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-7647
Report exposures in a non-laboratory setting
- Response: Report non-research laboratory exposures to Occupational Health
- CRC: 617-353-6630
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-8400
Report student exposures
- Response: Report student exposures to Student Health Services
- CRC: 617-353-3575
- BUMC/BMC: 617-353-3575
Mercury Spill
Any spill involving mercury MUST be reported to EHS by calling the appropriate number above. DO NOT attempt to clean a mercury spill, no matter how small.
Chemical Exposure
- Remove any contaminated clothing as quickly as possible.
- Flush any exposed skin or hair with water for at least 15 minutes. Do not hesitate in activating a safety shower.
- For chemical exposure to the eye:
- Flush with water for at least 15 minutes at an emergency eyewash station.
- Hold eyelids open while flushing.
- Seek appropriate medical attention. See Incident and Accident Reporting panel for more detail.
- In research laboratories, report all exposures to ROHP at 617-414-7647.
- For emergency medical assistance, call the appropriate number above. If transported to hospital, bring a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for the material you were exposed to, if able.
Biologic Spill or Exposure
Spill Assistance
- Response: Request assistance
- CRC: 617-353-2105
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-6666
Medical Assistance
Response: When calling:
- identify yourself
- provide a callback phone number
- state your exact location
- describe incident details
- External emergency services will be contacted as necessary.
- CRC: 617-353-2121
- BUMC/BMC: 617-358-4444
Report Exposures in a research laboratory
- Response: Report research laboratory exposures to ROHP
- CRC: 617-414-7647
- BUMC/BMC: 617-414-7647
Report exposures in a non-laboratory setting
- Response: Report non-research laboratory exposures to Occupational Health
- CRC: 617-353-6630
- BUMC/BMC: 617-638-8400
Report Student Exposures
- Response: Report student exposures to Student Health Services
- CRC: 617-353-3575
- BUMC/BMC: 617-353-3575
Blood/Body Fluid/Biological Spill
- Restrict access to the area and assess the extent of the spill.
- For large blood or body fluid spills, call the appropriate number above.
- Wear the proper PPE. At a minimum: safety glasses, gloves, and appropriate attire.
- Saturate the spill with an appropriate disinfectant. Allow a contact period of at least 15 minutes.
- Use paper towels, rags, or some other absorbent material to clean up the spill.
- Collect all spill material as biological waste.
- Dispose of waste according to procedure.
Biological Exposure
- If exposed to biological material, initiate first-aid procedures.
- For medical assistance, call the appropriate number above. If transported to hospital, bring available information for the material you were exposed to, if able.
- Remove any exposed clothing as quickly as possible.
- Flush any exposed skin or hair with water for at least 15 minutes. Do not hesitate in activating a safety shower.
- For exposure to the eye:
- Flush with water for at least 15 minutes at an emergency eyewash station.
- Hold eyelids open while flushing.
- Seek appropriate medical attention. See Incident and Accident Reporting panel for more detail.
- In research laboratories, report all exposures to ROHP at 617-414-7647.
Emergency Information for Medical Providers
Emergency Info for Medical Providers
Call ROHP at 617-414-7647 if you have a person exposed to biological agents or animal bite or scratch, or if they are experiencing unusual symptoms.
It is important that you call the Research Occupational Health Program at 617-414-7647 immediately if you have a person present to your facility with an exposure from biological agents, an animal bite or scratch or if they are experiencing unusual disease or allergy symptoms. A physician is available 24/7 to assist you with providing the appropriate treatment and link to ID physician if needed.
Post-Exposure First-Aid
Skin Exposure (needle-stick or scratch)
Immediately go to the sink and thoroughly wash the wound with soap and water for 15 minutes. Decontaminate any exposed skin surfaces with an antiseptic scrub solution.
Mucous Membrane Splash to Eye(s), Nose, or Mouth:
Exposure should be irrigated vigorously for 15 minutes.
Splash Affecting Garments:
Remove garments that may have become soiled or contaminated and place them in a double red plastic bag.
Employee should provide the wallet-sized agent ID card to the treating physician. This card may identify specific biological agents that the employee works with at Boston University. More information about the agent(s) identified on the card can be found on the Agent Information page.
If the patient is ill, follow isolation precaution per the instructions from the correlating agent information sheets.
Special Instructions:
BSL-3 Agents
Francisella tularensis agent information sheet
Mycobacterium tuberculosis agent information sheet
Yersinia pestis agent information sheet
- For exposures: individuals are not infectious immediately after an exposure; you should evaluate for symptoms. Depending on the agent involved, prophylaxis may be available. Please refer to the link above.
- For illness: depending on the agent, treatment and PPE may vary. Please see the correlating agent information sheet for basic information. Contact ROHP immediately at 617-414-7647, available 24/7, and request to speak to a physician so care can be coordinated.
BSL-4 Agents
Ebola agent information sheet
Marburg agent information sheet
- For exposure: individuals are not infectious immediately after an exposure; you should evaluate for symptoms, do not order lab work, and contact ROHP at 617-414-7647. The person will need to be transferred to Boston Medical Center. ROHP will coordinate the transfer of this individual.
- For illness: infectiousness depends on the agent and illness manifestation. Isolate patient per CDC recommendations for Viral Hemorrhagic Fever. Health care providers should wear PPE, N95 masks, gloves, gowns, and goggles; and follow infection control measures, including complete equipment sterilization and the isolation precautions. Contact ROHP at 617-414-7647; they will coordinate the transfer of this individual to Boston Medical Center.
Other Agents of Interest
Workers may also present with exposure or illness from other agents of lesser public health consequences. Please refer to specific agent sheets for each pathogen for information regarding pathogenicity, presentation, diagnosis, and treatment.