d. A discussion of the respirator's capabilities and limitations.
e. Instruction and training in the actual use of the respirator. This must include
hands on training during which workers are provided an opportunity to handle the
respirator, fit it properly, test its face piece to face seal, wear it in a test atmosphere.
Training must include that required to recognize and cope with emergency situations; it
must also include the requirement that respirator face piece shall be checked for fit each
time they are worn.
2-24. ASSIGNMENT OF RESPIRATORS TO PERSONNEL
Each job, which requires the use of a respirator, should have the correct
respirator specified for that job. Selection of the respirator should be made by the
supervisory personnel, using guidance provided by the Installation Medical Authority
(IMA), the Installation Respirator Program Director (IRPD), and the Installation
Respirator Specialist (IRS). Care should be taken that when a worker has been fitted
with a particular style and size of mask and instructed in its use and capabilities,
substitutions for that particular respirator must not be made. Respirators permanently
assigned to an individual worker must be durably and legibly marked with the
individual's name. The date of issuance should be centrally recorded and maintained
by the responsible individual for the overall respiratory protection program.
2-25. MAINTENANCE AND CLEANING
a. Routinely used respirators must be cleaned and disinfected as frequently as
necessary to ensure that the workers are provided the proper protection. This is
generally after the workers have been thoroughly briefed on the cleaning procedure, so
that they will be confident of always receiving a clean, disinfected respirator. This is
doubly important when respirators are not individually assigned. Those respirators
maintained for emergency use must be cleaned and disinfected after every use.
b. The following cleaning and disinfecting procedures are recommended:
(1)
Remove any filters, cartridges, or canisters.
(2) Wash face piece and breathing tube in cleaner disinfectant or detergent
solution. Cleaner disinfectant solutions are available which effectively clean the
respirator and also contain a bactericidal agent. As an alternative, respirators may be
washed in a liquid detergent solution and then immersed either in a hypo-chloride
solution for 2 minutes or an aqueous iodine solution for 2 minutes, or a quaternary
ammonium solution. A hand brush may be used to facilitate the removal of dirt.
Because some of these disinfecting agents may age rubber parts and corrode metal
parts, immersion times should be kept to a minimum and all disinfectants thoroughly
drained from the parts.
MD0165
2-42