Elements and Performance Criteria

RANGE STATEMENT
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.
Codes of practice
Where reference is made to industry codes of practice, and/or Australian/international standards, it is expected the latest version will be used
Standards, codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements
Standards, codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements may include:
Australian and international standards, such as:
AS/NZS 2243 Set:2006 Safety in laboratories set
AS/NZS 2982.1:1997 Laboratory design and construction - General requirements
AS/NZS 4187:2003 Cleaning, disinfecting and sterilising reusable medical and surgical instruments and equipment and maintenance of associated environments in health care facilities
AS/NZS ISO 14000 Set:2005 Environmental management standards set
HB 9-1994 Occupational personal protection
Australia New Zealand Food Standards (ANZFS) Code
Australian code of good manufacturing practice for medicinal products (GMP)
Australian Dangerous Goods Code
client and product specifications
manufacturer's instructions or verbal direction from laboratory manager, supervisor or senior technician
material safety data sheets (MSDS)
National Code of Practice for the labelling of workplace substances [NOHSC:2012 (1994)]
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Guidelines
OHS national standards and codes of practice
operation and maintenance manuals for automated media preparation equipment
principles of good laboratory practice (GLP)
production schedules and instructions
standard operating procedures (SOPs)
Personal protective equipment
Personal protective equipment may include:
gloves, safety glasses, goggles, face guards, coveralls, gowns, body suits and respirators
biohazard containers and laminar flow cabinets
Sample pot and transfer media and the subculturing and/or passaging of culture
Sample pot and transfer media and the subculturing and/or passaging of culture to:
sterile broth
media for isolation of colony
tissue culture media
media for continuous culture systems
Samples
Samples may include:
body fluids and liquids
water and soil
sterile pharmaceuticals
yeasts and moulds
milk and yoghurt
swabs and smears
propagation tissue
plant material
fermented foods and beverages
Equipment
Equipment may include:
transfer equipment, such as inoculating loops, pipettes (quantitative and qualitative), flasks, tubes and spatulas
Bunsen burners and bench incinerators
anaerobic jars
incubators, water baths, refrigerators, freezers and possibly dry ice and liquid nitrogen cylinders
laminar flow units and biohazard cabinets
autoclave or pressure cooker
swabs
continuous culture systems
The range of material
The range of material may involve:
solid and/or liquid media
supplied media, such as media manufactured in the enterprise or raw material supplies for media
disinfecting and sterilising agents and materials, such as methylated spirits, ethanol and ether
disposable equipment and clothing
tissue culture media
growth media in broths, plates, deeps or slopes
receptacles for safe disposal of wastes and for processing of reusable materials
bar coding material and labels
Sterilisation techniques
Sterilisation techniques may include:
autoclaving
flaming
steam and membrane filtration
boiling
microwaving
radiation
high temperature
high pressure steam
gas and chemical treatments
Quality control checks
Quality control checks may include:
streaking out of cultures to a single colony
lawn cultures
Hazards
Hazards may include:
accessing the sample from difficult or dangerous areas
dry ice and liquid nitrogen vapour
ultraviolet (UV) light sources
heat from Bunsen burners
molten agar
sharps
hazardous substances and/or infectious agents
Workplace information
Workplace information may include:
SOPs
specifications for safe waste disposal of bio-hazardous materials
production schedules and instructions
work notes
MSDS
manufacturer's instructions
verbal instructions from laboratory manager, supervisor or senior technician
guidelines for small scale genetic manipulation work
Occupational health and safety (OHS) and environmental management requirements
OHS and environmental management requirements:
all operations must comply with enterprise OHS and environmental management requirements, which may be imposed through state/territory or federal legislation - these requirements must not be compromised at any time
all operations assume the potentially hazardous nature of samples and require standard precautions to be applied
where relevant, users should access and apply current industry understanding of infection control issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and State and Territory Departments of Health

EVIDENCE GUIDE
The Evidence Guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit
In particular, assessors should look to see that the candidate:
follows established laboratory procedures, including recording of samples, operation of equipment and cleaning/decontamination
prevents cross-contamination of sample source and sample
manipulates equipment to prevent contamination of culture medium during transfer
sterilises equipment as required to prevent cross-contamination of work area, personnel and environment.

Context of and specific resources for assessment
This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or simulated workplace environment.
This unit of competency may be assessed with:
MSL943002A Participate in laboratory/field workplace safety
MSL973003A Prepare culture media.
Resources may include:
standard laboratory with appropriate equipment and materials
enterprise procedures and standard methods
MSDS.

Method of assessment
The following assessment methods are suggested:
review of quality assurance results and examination of samples transferred by the candidate
observation of the candidate successfully transferring a range of samples
written and/or oral questioning to assess underpinning knowledge.
In all cases, practical assessment should be supported by questions to assess underpinning knowledge and those aspects of competency which are difficult to assess directly.
Where applicable, reasonable adjustment must be made to work environments and training situations to accommodate ethnicity, age, gender, demographics and disability.
Access must be provided to appropriate learning and/or assessment support when required.
The language, literacy and numeracy demands of assessment should not be greater than those required to undertake the unit of competency in a work like environment.

This competency in practice
Industry representatives have provided the case studies below to illustrate the practical application of this unit of competency and show its relevance in a workplace setting.
Food processing
As part of the quality assurance program at an ice-cream manufacturer, six ice-creams were removed from the production line, placed in sterile bags and then stored in a freezer in the microbiology laboratory. Later in the morning, the laboratory assistant removed the samples from the freezer, registered the samples with the date received and test code and signed the register book. She/he then placed the samples in a water bath set at 42(C. While the samples were melting, the laboratory assistant labelled the respective agar plates with the registered codes. Using aseptic techniques she/he carefully transferred 1ml of ice-cream mix into the total plate count agar. The plates were then placed in the incubator. The final results were noted and recorded.
Biomedical
In preparation for antibiotic sensitivity testing and biochemical identification of presumed pathogenic bacteria, a technical assistant was asked to prepare a sterile peptone suspension of a lactose fermenting colony. The colony had been previously identified by the supervisor on a MacConkey's agar plate. The assistant labelled a 5mL tube of peptone broth with the sample number and a code for the identified colony and then donned a pair of disposable gloves. Bringing the labelled tube and the MacConkey's plate near to the Bunsen, she/he took an inoculating loop and sterilised it in the incandescent flame. She/he carefully cooled the loop in a sterile area of the agar and gently scraped off half the colony. With the other hand, and in the vicinity of the heated air of the Bunsen, she/he removed the cover of the peptone tube in her/his crooked finger. In a continuous and coordinated way she/he flamed the lip of the tube and emulsified the colony in the broth. She/he then flamed the lip of the tube and replaced its cover. Finally, the technical assistant re-sterilised the inoculating loop by introducing and holding it in the Bunsen flame to minimise the generation of bacterial aerosols.