The BLS will host a reception at ILSC to recognize its certified Laser Safety Officers, medical (CMLSO) and non-medical (CLSO), and to present BLS Illumination Award. The recipient of the award will be announced at the reception, held on Monday, 18 March 2019. The first BLS Illumination Award was presented to Mount Sinai Health System in 2017 in recognition of its support of laser safety through employee participation within the laser safety community and outstanding contributions to the field of laser safety.
Continuing a tradition begun at ILSC 2017, BLS will honor its CLSOs and CMLSOs who have been certified for 10 years or more by recognizing them with a commemorative lapel pin.
BLS will be holding CLSO and CMLSO exams the day before the start of ILSC on March 17th, 2019 for approved applicants who have submitted all application materials on or before March 1st, 2019.
According to Barbara Sams, Executive Director of BLS, “The ILSC venue provides an excellent opportunity for those eligible to take their CLSO or CMLSO exam, and then further their laser safety education at the conference. Of particular interest should be the Medical and Technical Practical Applications Seminars, MPAS and TPAS respectively, both of which are once again chaired by BLS certified laser safety officers.”
For more information on LSO or MLSO certification, please contact BLS.
For conference and registration details for ILSC, please contact LIA.
As part of our continued celebration of National Safety Month, we are raising awareness on the value of becoming a Certified Medical Laser Safety Officer (CMLSO) with this next blog in the June Laser Safety series. Click here to read about becoming a Certified Laser Safety Officer (CLSO).
Oftentimes the position of medical laser safety officer (MLSO) goes unrewarded, overlooked as long as the individual with that responsibility does the job correctly – after all, done right nothing happens.
Elevate your status by proving your knowledge of laser safety protocols and requirements through certification by the Board of Laser Safety. Whether you are an RN, OR supervisor, or technician with the desire to add to your job designation, MLSO certification will demonstrate your value to the organization that employs you.
“Certification has validated my credibility and allowed me to work with different laser companies to assist in their training programs as well,” said Terri Clark, a Registered Nurse at SpaMedica in Toronto, Canada.
Certification can also help to confirm your employer’s commitment to a safe working environment. One way to avoid workplace accidents is to follow AORN’s Guidelines for Perioperative Practice. Evidence-based guidance for nursing, it not only helps to standardize perioperative practice, but promotes patient and worker safety as well. In the recommendations for personnel working in a laser environment, the guidelines call for a thorough understanding of laser procedures, formal education (medical laser safety AND MLSO), and attainment of certification as a MLSO.
One of your first steps to becoming certified is by taking LIA’s Medical Laser Safety Officer Training. This training meets one of the four requirements to sit for the Certified Medical Laser Safety Officer (CMLSO) exam. For your convenience, this training is available as an online course as well as in the classroom. Education is an essential element of laser safety and LIA is committed to making the opportunity to deepen laser safety knowledge widely available. These MLSO training courses meet the requirements outlined by ANSI, OSHA and The Joint Commission.
To obtain certification, you must pass the 100-question CMLSO exam, which is based on the 2011 edition of the ANSI Z136.3 Safe Use of Lasers in Health Care standard and covers eight areas of practice related to medical laser safety. You may take the CMLSO exam at a computer-based testing location or by pencil-and-paper following most LIA MLSO classroom courses.
For more information on becoming a CMLSO, visit www.lasersafety.org or call 407-985-3810.
Laser safety professionals: It’s time to step outside of your routine. Learn from the foremost laser safety experts and discover resources that you can bring back to your organization at the 2017 edition of the International Laser Safety Conference (ILSC).
ILSC brings together many of the brightest minds and seasoned industry specialists from across the globe. From March 20-23 in Atlanta, GA, you can join your fellow laser safety professionals in attending presentations on the latest research and insights regarding safety standards and technical developments. By learning from peers and professionals, you’ll also become a better representative at your job or organization for ensuring safety with lasers per OSHA/ANSI standards.
Explore more of the benefits of ILSC below.
Benefits for Medical Laser Safety Officers and Laser Safety Officers
The Laser Institute of America has gathered together top members of the medical and scientific communities to give presentations during the four-day event. Medical Laser Safety Officers and Laser Safety Officers can deepen their knowledge of scientific developments; find solutions for dilemmas commonly encountered in day-to-day work; learn potential risks related to laser use and exposure, and critically examine the future of laser applications.
Professionals in the medical, military, government, environmental and insurance industries will all benefit from the Scientific Sessions and Practical Applications Seminars. In addition to networking between seminars, the seminars provide a unique opportunity to hear from those working using lasers in medical and technical fields and applying their experience to identify potential pitfalls with dangerous equipment.
What to Expect from the Medical Seminars
MLSOs can attend presentations and walk away with valuable insights that they can immediately apply to day-to-day tasks. With cutting-edge medical laser safety presentations, attendees from a variety of backgrounds will also have the chance to expand their scope of laser safety knowledge.
Learn about plume hazards, physics, and tissue interaction. Gain command of OR precautions by attending presentations on setting up a safety program, ethical dilemmas, and accidents. Make sure your understanding of current standards is up-to-date with upper airway guidelines, AORN practices, and ANSI standards.
What to Expect from the Technical Seminars
The Technical Practical Application Seminars are geared toward Laser Safety Officers but provide information that is applicable for other industries as well.
Brush up on topics such as laser safety in the workplace, determining Nominal Hazard Zones, eye protection recommendations and identifying mandatory control measures. Improve your ability to gauge situations where laser use may become dangerous. Find out which regulations apply directly to you and how you can control non-beam hazards.
Fuse Theory and Practice with Complementary Seminars
Each of these practical seminars along with the scientific sessions join together seamlessly to give you a foundation for determining and maintaining laser safety standards. As you find out about new and innovative products, research and analyses, you will expand your perspective of laser safety across industries. Each attendee has the chance to take these insights back to their own workplace and identify future problems and ways to improve current safety protocol.
What happened this week in Lasers? Our LasersToday.com Weekly Wrap-Up aggregates industry news, conference updates, & LIA happenings.
Here are the latest updates:
Laser Industry News
According to New Scientist, a plasma tidal waves may tell us if black holes destroy information. That’s right – a laser-driven tidal wave could test a question that has long plagued physics: is the information inside a black hole lost forever or somehow preserved through the mysterious machinations of quantum mechanics?
Courtesy: New Scientist
Around the world, interest in additive manufacturing is growing. This week, we took a closer look at the ways additive manufacturing is applied in China. From educational programs to successful 3D printed transplants, to innovators in the field, learn about China’s additive manufacturing initiatives here.
LIA Updates
As lasers become increasingly prominent in medical procedures and applications, there is a greater need for safety training among medical professionals. Nurses make excellent candidates for Medical Laser Safety Officer (MLSO) training. Check out the four ways they benefit from laser safety training here.
Learn everything you need to know about Laser Cutting: Our Laser Institute of AmericaGuide to Laser Cutting has been reduced by 50%. Get your Copy Today.
LIA will be in attendance at SPIE Photonics West in San Francisco, California, this weekend. Stop by Booth #3060 to say hello!
Conference News
The Laser Additive Manufacturing Workshop (LAM®) is just a few weeks away! LAM® features a wide variety of additive manufacturing applications, such as metal feedstock, process monitoring, selective laser melting, and more! Check out the advance program for details on sessions and presentations for this year’s event here.
Registered for LAM, but still need to figure out transportation around the Houston area? Visit the LAM® transportation page for airport information, and rental
car discounts.
Time is running out to register for LAM 2017, taking place February 21-22, 2017 in Houston, Texas. For more information and to register, please visit https://www.lia.org/conferences/lam
Don’t miss a single laser industry update! Sign up today to receive the latest in lasers delivered straight to your inbox. Be sure to follow LIA on Facebook and Twitter for even more laser news.
The Laser Institute of America (LIA) is the international society for laser applications and safety. Our mission is to foster lasers, laser applications, and laser safety worldwide. Find us at www.lia.org
ORLANDO, FL, Aug. 14, 2014 — In an effort to give students a first-hand experience with lasers in the operating room, the Laser Institute of America (LIA) is partnering with medical solutions provider Universal Hospital Services (UHS), through its UHS Surgical Services business unit, to offer laser demonstrations at LIA’s Medical Laser Safety Officer (MLSO) training courses.
UHS first demonstrated a CO2 laser at a recent LIA course in Boston. UHS is a nationally recognized provider of state-of-the-art mobile surgical equipment and operates from more than 80 offices across the US.
