Control to Prevent Exposure
Control to prevent exposure
Systems used to prevent and control exposure:
Engineering controls
Work practices
Personal protective equipment
Engineering Controls
- Reduce exposure by either removing or isolating the hazard or isolating the worker from exposure
- Are limited in effectiveness to proper selection, examination, and maintenance
Work Practices
Alter the manner in which a task is performed can consist of:
- Restricting eating, drinking, smoking, applying cosmetics or lip balm, and handling contact lenses
- Prohibiting mouth pipetting
- Preventing the storage of food or drink in refrigerators or other locations where blood or OPIMs are kept
- Routinely checking equipment for contamination and decontaminating it prior to servicing and shipping
- Providing and requiring the use of handwashing facilities
- Washing hands when gloves are removed and as soon as possible after skin contact with blood or OPIMs
- Always use gloves when cleaning up any blood spills
- Prohibiting recapping, bending, removing, sharing, or breaking contaminated needles
Personal Protective Equipment
Must be used if engineering and work practice control does not eliminate exposure
Can consist of:
- Gloves / Gowns
- Laboratory coats
- Face shield or masks
- Eye protection
- Other PPE
Appropriate only if it prevents blood or OPIMs from passing through or reaching clothes or body
Work Practices
- Providing and requiring the use of hand-washing facilities
- Washing hands when gloves are removed and as soon as possible after skin contact with blood or OPIMS
- Always using gloves when cleaning up any blood spills
- Prohibiting recapping, bending, removing, shearing, or breaking contaminated needles
Housekeeping
Work practices related to housekeeping:
-
- Cleaning and decontaminating the environment that has been contaminated with blood or OPIM
- Decontaminating work surfaces after completion of procedures; immediately after spills of blood or OPIMs
- Removing and replacing protective coverings when contaminated
- Regularly inspecting and decontaminating reusable receptacles that are likely to become contaminated
- Using mechanical means to pick up contaminated broken glass
- Storing or processing reusable sharps in a way that ensures safe handling
- Placing discarded contaminated sharps in labeled or color-coded containers that are closable, puncture-resistant, and leak-proof
- Keeping sharps containers upright during use, replaced routinely, closed when moved, and not overfilled
- Placing other regulated waste in closable, leak-proof, and labeled or color-coded containers
- Handling contaminated laundry as little as possible and using appropriate PPE
- Placing wet contaminated laundry in labeled or color-coded leak-proof containers
- Bag contaminated laundry without sorting or rinsing in area of use
Universal Precautions
Precautionary measures based on the principle that all blood and OPIMs are treated as if known to be infectious for HIV, HBV, and other bloodborne pathogens. These include:
- Hand hygiene
- Use of gloves, gown, mask, eye protection, or face shield, depending on the anticipated exposure
- Safe injection practices