Elements and Performance Criteria

The range of variables relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that will affect performance.
Where reference is made to industry Codes of Practice, and/or Australian/international standards, it is expected the latest version will be used.
Personnel work in accordance with work instructions and standard operating procedures which incorporate all relevant aspects of OHS legislation and the codes, guidelines, regulations and Australian standards applying to environmental hazards and dangerous goods.

Regulations, codes and standards may include
AS/NZ 2243.3 Safety in laboratories, Part 3 - Microbiology
AS 2500 Storage of goods
AS 2503 Safety storage and handling information cards
AS 2982 Hand washing facilities
SAA HB9 Occupational personal protection, and other relevant standards for protective, clothing (for example, AS 2161, AS 2210, AS 1337 and AS 1338)
AS 4187 Code of Practice for cleaning, disinfecting and sterilising reusable medical and surgical instruments and equipment, and maintenance of associated environments in health care facilities
Food Standards Code Australia and New Zealand.
Facilities, equipment and processes would conform to the recommendations of AS/NZ 2243.3 Safety in laboratories, Part 3- Microbiology, and National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines on infection control.

Personal protective equipment may include
gloves, safety glasses, goggles, face guards, coveralls, gowns, body suits, respirators
biohazard containers and laminar flow cabinets.

Aseptic sampling and transfers will typically involve accessing a sample source, using specified equipment to remove a sample and transferring it to a specified vessel without
contamination of the sample source
contamination of the sample
cross contamination
contamination of the workplace.

Sampling transfers may include 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 could 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 may include
transfer equipment, such as inoculating loops, pipettes (quantitative and qualitative), flasks, tubes and spatulas
bunsen burners and bench incinerators
anaerobic jars
incubators, waterbaths, 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 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 reuseable materials
bar coding material and labels.
Sterilisation techniques could include autoclaving, steam and membrane filtration, boiling, microwaving, radiation, high temperature, high pressure steam, gas and chemical treatments.

Hazards may include
accessing the sample from difficult or dangerous areas
dry ice and liquid nitrogen vapour
UV light sources
heat from bunsen burners
molten agar
sharps
hazardous substances and/or infectious agents.

Workplace information may include
standard operating procedures (SOPs)
specifications for safe waste disposal of biohazardous materials
production schedules and instructions
work notes
material safety data sheets (MSDSs)
manufacturer's instructions
verbal instructions from laboratory manager, supervisor or senior technician
guidelines for small scale genetic manipulation work.
It is expected that all procedures, including recording of samples, operation of equipment and cleaning/decontamination will be carried out according to established laboratory procedures and these may vary across sectors. All sterilising equipment must meet state OHS legislation for pressure equipment. All samples and wastes must be handled in accordance with OHS and environmental guidelines and Australian Standard AS 2243.3.

Health, safety and environment
All operations to which this unit applies are subject to stringent health, safety and environmental (HSE) requirements, which may be imposed through State or Federal legislation, and these must not be compromised at any time. Where there is an apparent conflict between performance criteria and HSE requirements, the HSE requirements take precedence.
All operations assume the potentially hazardous nature of samples and require standard precautions to be applied. Users should access and apply current industry understanding of infection control issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council and State and Territory Departments of Health. All operations are performed in accordance with standard operating procedures.

The Evidence Guide describes the underpinning knowledge and skills that must be demonstrated to prove competence.
Critical aspects of competency

Competency must be demonstrated in the ability to perform consistently at the required standard. In particular, assessors should look to see that the candidate:

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.

Underpinning knowledge

Competency includes the ability to apply and explain:

principles of infection control related to occupational health and safety, sampling and transfer of materials in microbiological investigations
disinfection and sterilisation procedures used in the collection, processing and safe disposal of samples and materials
importance of pure culture techniques and aseptic transfer to the successful microbiological investigation and correct interpretation of laboratory results
growth requirements of micro-organisms (bacteria, fungi, protozoans, viruses and multicellular parasites) in terms of their laboratory culture
effects of physical and chemical agents on microbial growth and death.

The candidate must be able to follow defined OHS policies and procedures. In some instances the candidate may also need to apply:

environmental requirements
infection control procedures
food safety principles
relevant health, safety and environment requirements.

Specific industry

Additional knowledge requirements may apply for different industry sectors. For example, for the food processing industries:

food spoilage symptoms
beneficial/detrimental organisms relevant to specific food industry sector.

Assessment context and methods
This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or simulated workplace environment.

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 (questioning will be appropriate to the language and literacy levels of the candidate).
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.
Questioning techniques should suit the language and literacy levels of the candidate.

Interdependent assessment of unit

This unit of competency may be assessed with:

PMLOHS302A Participate in laboratory/field workplace safety.

Resource implications

Resources may include:

standard laboratory with appropriate equipment and materials
enterprise procedures and standard methods
material safety data sheets (MSDSs).

This competency in practice
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 DegreesC. 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.
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 resterilised the inoculating loop by introducing and holding it in the bunsen flame to minimise the generation of bacterial aerosols.

The seven key competencies represent generic skills considered for effective work participation. The bracketed numbering against each of the key competencies indicates the performance level required in this unit. These are stand-alone levels and do not correspond to levels in the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).
Level (1) represents the competence to undertake tasks effectively
Level (2) represents the competence to manage tasks
Level (3) represents the competence to use concepts for evaluating and reshaping tasks.
Communicating ideas and information
(1)

Collecting analysing and organising information
(1)

Planning and organising activities
(2)

Working with others and in teams
(1)

Using mathematical ideas and techniques
(1)

Solving problems
(1)

Using technology
(1)