Hi All
has anyone come across an employee who has identified desktop printer ink as a respiratory sensitiser? I know industrial printing ink can be.
I am seeing a lady who has identified this as a problem. The employer can't relocate her to an area where there is no printer as they do not have any spare offices ( this is an NHS trust) and she has to share her office with a secretary who uses the printer on a regular basis. Have explored option of secretary batching her print requests and printing them off when the lady in question is not in the office, but this has proved unworkable.
COSHH would presumably apply, although going onto the new HSE asthma website, printer ink is not listed as a resp sensitiser, but maybe there are isocyanates in the printer ink.
Am trying to get info from manufacturers of the ink.
Lady is an nurse specialist who used to work with Hiclear disinfectant on ITU, so possibility of sensitisation following previous exposure to substance if it was in Hi clear and also the printing ink.
Problem being: is she fit for work (work is respiratory clinical nurse specialist, exposed to TB patients and therefore reluctant to take oral steroids if asthma exacerbated by printer ink exposure)
if there is no other office for her to work in, or the secretary who uses the printer ( and they claim there isn't), what else can the employer do?
look forward to your responses
Chloe
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