The Environmental Health section of REM is responsible for health related programs that are designed to prevent communicable disease transmission. The environmental health section has awareness and training programs for the following areas:

• Biohazard Awareness - Biohazard information materials, awareness training, laboratory inspection, and autoclave testing.
• Bloodborne Pathogens - Training, decontamination procedures, waste handling, and blood product exposure investigations are conducted by REM.

The Environmental Health section is also responsible for:

• General Environmental Health - Environmental conditions in and around buildings and on Purdue properties are surveyed and evaluated.  Public health related complaints are fielded and investigated, e.g., animal bite/exposures, human parasites, insect, and rodent infestation.
• Food Safety - University food services are inspected once per semester. Inspections are used to make recommendations concerning safe handling, preparation, and storage of food items.  Microbial surface samples are also collected once per semester.  Results from these samples are used as a tool to measure cleaning and disinfection methods, as well as determining the quality of food items.
• Potable Water Safety inside the building is defined as any water that is plumbed for human consumption, e.g., drinking fountains, kitchenette sinks, and food preparation sinks.  This covers quality issues such as taste, odor, hazard evaluation, backflow prevention requirements, and decontamination steps for plumbing systems.

Please direct any questions or concerns about the following areas to Robert Golden.