Overview
Lab is unsecured. Doors left open/unlocked when unoccupied. No screens on windows that open.
Security is an important concept for research laboratories and for our purposes it refers to physical security of biological agents. Access to all labs should be limited and labs should not be left unlocked when not occupied. If you arrive at a lab and the door is open and no one is in the lab, make note of it, but do not necessarily cite it under this item as this requires professional judgement to determine if it is a deficiency or not. Often there will be tasks that require lab workers to leave the lab temporarily only to return in a short amount of time. Locking the door during the day every time someone leaves the lab is a pain and can impede the workflow in the lab. Cite unlocked labs very judiciously.
Another aspect of biosecurity, both from a contamination perspective as well as a potential release perspective due to the insects becoming contaminated and leaving the lab, involves preventing insects from entering labs. This aspect is cited when the lab has exterior windows that open and do not have screens or the screens have holes in them. Not many labs have windows that open, but there are a few in older buildings on campus, so keep an eye out for this.