Tough job just got

hazardous material at incident scenes, examiners were already equipped with full PPE including gloves, bodysuits and tightfitting FFP3 masks for use where the highest levels of respiratory protection are required.

These masks are now being worn more frequently due to the pandemic and some PPE rules have changed, such as wearing double gloves when dealing with evidence.

Scene examiners are also required to assess their ability to stay physically distanced from the public and colleagues during a crime scene examination.

Car sharing within teams is no longer allowed and general hygiene has been enhanced.

Ivan said: “Those who work in forensic science fully understand the principles of cross contamination and this is what our scene examiners are looking for when they attempt to find evidence that may identify the culprits at a crime scene.

“The offenders leaving behind material such as DNA or fingerprint ridge detail evidence.

“Using the same knowledge of how relatively easily every contact leaves a trace, scene examiners also adopt stringent counter contamination methods to ensure they do not transfer evidential material by accident and this involves double gloving of hands and frequent glove changes as well as other PPE.”

Ivan says this understanding of cross contamination heightens examiners’ awareness of how easily a virus can transfer.

He said: “This provides an advantage in approaching the hazards of Covid-19 infection with the right assessment of the risk but also leaves many in our teams with a sense of wondering if that day they did enough to combat this potentially deadly threat.

“This really focuses the mind, particularly if you live with someone with a health condition that could become gravely ill if they were infected.

“Of course this is not unique to scene examiners and many people who perform key roles currently have to consider this reality every time they go home after their shift.”

Peer support is crucial and reduced numbers in the workplace have made it harder for staff to connect with each other.

Ivan said: “The natural debrief and sharing of experiences at the end of a demanding day can play an important part of managing

Teams make a risk assessment.