Microbiology and pregnant

[mrsberman]

Has anyone taken this class while pregnant? My instructor is a little too overly cautious about me being pregnant and doing lab. I can't touch anything because "chemicals are dangerous while pregnant." We work with iodine, ethanol (alcohol), carbol fuschion... There are some chemicals that are more dangerous, but I'm not inhaling, ingesting or getting any of them on my skin. He asked if I would drink while pregnant and I fired back with the a beer or glass of wine here or there is perfectly ok. He disagreed. Basically I have to rely on another student to do my lab work. If she messes up, I mess up. I'm talking to my MW when I see her next, but I'm not worried about doing any of the lab work (unless we're dealing with fumes).

[dizzysmom]

I had microbiology my last semester of school, right before I got pregnant with DD. But I do remember the professor being very clear on the very first day of class - before we even got to the lab - that we needed to speak to him ASAP is we were expecting or if we suspected a pregnancy at any time. It wasn't an issue for anybody in my lab section as far as I know, so I don't know what he would have required differently of a pregnant student. There are some chemicals and a couple of microorganisms that I would be squeamish about handling while pregnant.

Can you talk to the department head about the instructor's policy (although it might be the school's policy too, I suppose) of not allowing you to do any lab work, or possibly get permission to switch lab sections so you have a different instructor?

[butterflies]

I'm a biomedical scientist and I can tell you I have always been able to continue working, perhaps with some minor modifications, throughout pregnancy. I know many other women who have done the same.

Your school should have something like an Occupational Health and Safety office that can advise you. Usually these folks are extremely knowledgeable. Bring a copy of your syllabus and if you can, pull up the MSDS sheets for the chemicals you'll be using. I bet you'll find that the typical safety precautions-- the ones that everyone should follow (gloves, eye protection, etc)- are sufficient.

I would be worried about fumes from organic solvents (toluene, xylene, etc) and fixatives like formaldehyde, acetone. But it doesn't sound like you are using anything like that.

[mrsberman]

I have the MSDS sheets but I haven't looked at them yet. Our syllabus says to notify the instructor if we are pregnant. Same exact syllabus as when I had Physiollogy. It states that "Although the chemicals we are using are not dangerous, pregnant women should not be around chemicals." So far we have worked with E. coli, malachite green, iodine, nigrosin and some others I can't remember. I'm thinking whoever wrote this hasn't ever been pregnant and doesn't really know what is dangerous and what isn't. Radiation isn't recommended while pregnant, yet women get on planes all the time and there is a small ammount of radiation when flying (or so I've read). I don't trust my lab partner. She got a 76% on the first exam she she has taken the course before. Hopefully I can see my MW this week and get a note saying it's ok to participate or what isn't ok to handle.

[Carolina Kel]

I agree with the PP's in looking up the MSDS information. Most of the stuff you are going to use in Micro isn't dangerous to preggos if you use proper protective equipment.

I would also suggest looking into purchasing your own personal protective equipment - disposable gloves, disposable face mask and goggles. The gloves and masks you can purchase at any medical supply store or pharmacy.

I would also emphasize good handwashing (not just using that crappy sanitizer in a pump) practices too afterwards, and not working with chemicals and specimens if you have open cuts/sores/lesions on your hands if you do not use gloves.

Best of luck!

[starbyfar7]

i'm taking o'chem this semester and had to drop the lab portion because of the chemicals. even though they use a special hood area so no one breaths that stuff in.. the issue, he said, wasn't me. he was sure id be ultra careful, but the other students in the class do stupid things all the time and i'd be putting my baby at risk. i just decided to wait and take the lab another later. it isnt worth it.

if your teacher sees it as a risk, you may want to listen. im sure he only has your best interest in mind

[MamaPhD]

I am a PhD in molecular cell biology & have been working in laboratory setting for many years. In my opinion, reading the MSDS yourself may not be suffieicent information for your safety. I recommend that you talk to occupational health specialist to go over the materials you can me exposed to in class. Also "common sense" protective equipments are not protective against many chemicals I found out when I was pregnant. For example, a paper face mask doesn't protect you against anything really. You breathe right through it. You would need a gas ask with filter cartridges to protect yourself against organic and other solvents, etc. Same with latex gloves. A lot of stuff goes through - no they won't leave visible holes so you can't tell. They just seep in.
So even though microbio sounds pretty tame, I would err on the side of caution! Good luck!

[Skippy918]

Do you think he's telling you that you shouldn't participate from a liability standpoint? Maybe he's just trying to cover his butt in case something happens and just preventing himself or the school from getting sued?

In my company, if you are pregnant, you can choose whether you want to go in the factory or not. I still do (and did last time), but there are certain areas I will avoid and I try to limit my exposure.

[jcregan]

I would talk to you instructor about your concerns with your grade and your lab partner.

Perhaps you could do something like detailed descriptions of the procedures and why you perform each step to demonstrate your understanding of the lab portions so that you might be able to earn some of your own grades in lab?

Maybe you can offer to personally research a few of the chemicals and if you find confirmation about there being no concerns about certain things that he would agree to let you be involved in those lab.

As an instructor- he honestly probably does not have the time to exhaustively research each product used and exactly what proper procedures a pregnant woman would want to use - and he does not want pregnant women or their babies harmed un-necessarily.

If your grade is one of your main concerns then talk to you instructor about that aspect.

[altoidmandy]

I am a college professor and run my own chemistry lab. I have female graduate students who work in the lab, so I had a conversation with a person from my college's health and safety office about whether or not it was appropriate for them to work in the lab. He told me that it is ILLEGAL and discriminatory for me to not allow them the option of working in the lab while pregnant. While I can inform them of the risks and appropriate precautions to take, I CANNOT tell them they can't do lab work. I realize that you are a student while my grad students are paid employees, but I would think you would have a similar protection. Talk to your college's health and safety person- they should be able to give you info on what is safe during pregnancy. I think that many of the things that you would be working with in a microbiology lab would be okay with minimal exposure, but the job of the health and safety person is to help you identify potential risks. PM me if you need specific help or advice and good luck!

[kareniswaiting]

I agree with everyone who said you need to speak with your administrator. It is absolutely inappropriate for your professor to automatically exclude you from lab. Yes, some things are not good for baby but you can just step outside for that portion of that lab. A little E. Coli (which is the majority of what you work with) isn't going to hurt anyone. I really urge you to speak with the department head or the ombudsmen at your school. you should be allowed to do the majority of the labs. I can see bot being able to take organic chem lab or biochem because I can't tell you how many times I've accidentally taken a big whiff of some chemical that should have been kept under the hood.

Good luck! Don't be afraid to stand up for your pregnant rights!

[mrsberman]

Hmm I don't even know if there is a health and safety department. I'll have to find out. It's a really small community college, smaller than my high school. He has only told me once to not do something and that's because there were chemicals that were being heated and it created fumes (no we weren't using a fume hood either) and that when it comes to handling stains another student can do it for me. I just find it funny that iodine and ethanol are a concern to him. I'm going to the mw tomorrow and I want to know what she says. I just think it's weird to say the chemicals aren't dangerous, but pregnant women should not be around any chemicals. I guess I should toss out my Lysol by the lab's standards.