Formalin

[DachRN]

Anyone ever been told "unable, not allowed to be in a room with formalin present"? Co-worker RN refused to place specimen in a container of formalin that had a cover due to "toxic fumes that may escape & cause a reaction" Requested specimen be taken to a department with air hood to open container & put specimen in? (I was thinking, how did they attend anatomy lab & dissection for four hours 3x a week where formalin was everywhere?) Just wondering?

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

One can have an allergic reaction to formalin.  Few nursing programs use anatomical models instead to prevent allergy exposure similar to not using latex gloves in sim labs.

https://dermnetnz.org/topics/formaldehyde-allergy