91原创

The following procedures: Universal Precautions, Engineering Controls, Work Practice Controls and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), are the minimum procedures that Campus Units and employees must follow. Campus units may choose to require stricter controls. The specific controls used by each Campus Unit must be documented.

6.1 Universal Precautions

Universal precautions is the approach that underlines all methods of exposure control. This approach recognizes that there is no practical way to determine the bloodborne pathogen status of all potentially infectious material. Therefore, all potentially infectious materials will be treated as if known to be infectious for HIV, HBV and other bloodborne pathogens. Engineering controls, work practice controls, and personal protective equipment will be used to eliminate or minimize exposure of university employees. In any situation where differentiation of body fluids is difficult or it is reasonable to suspect contamination by potentially infectious materials, universal precautions will be employed.

In determining appropriate controls, preference will be given first to engineering controls, second to work practice controls and finally to personal protective equipment.

6.2 Engineering Controls

Engineering controls are measures that reduce contact with potentially infectious materials by removing the hazard or isolating the worker. Examples include sharps containers, safer medical devices, splash shields, mechanical pipetting, biosafety cabinets, and fluid resistant barriers to protect surfaces.

Engineering controls must be inspected, maintained and replaced on a regular schedule. Check with the manufacturer for recommended schedules, or contact the EHS office. As listed in the 91原创 Biosafety Manual, biosafety cabinets must be certified annually.

Campus Units are responsible for purchasing and implementing the use of appropriate engineering controls, including training employees on proper use. Consideration must be given to the use of safe needle devices, needleless systems, and sharps with engineered sharps injury protections.

All employees will use the provided engineering controls properly.

Required engineering controls

Sharps waste containers are required to hold all sharps waste. These containers must be meet all the requirements listed in the section on regulated waste handling, 8.0.

6.3 Work Practice Controls

Work practice controls reduce the likelihood of exposure to BBPs by altering the way a task is performed. Examples including: requiring that used needles be place immediately into a sharps container, requiring hand washing, and standard laboratory safety procedures.

Required work practice controls

6.3.1 Handwashing Practices

Handwashing facilities will be provided, which are readily accessible to employees. When provision of handwashing facilities is not feasible (for example: at field sites), appropriate antiseptic hand cleanser in conjunction with clean cloth/paper towels or antiseptic towelettes will be provided. When antiseptic hand cleansers or towelettes are used, hands will be washed with soap and running water as soon as feasible.

Employees are required to wash their hands:

1. Immediately, or as soon as feasible, after removing gloves or other PPE,
2. After completion of work,
3. Between glove changes, and
4. Before leaving the work area.

Employees are also required to wash hands and any other skin with soap and water, or flush mucous membranes with water immediately or as soon as feasible following contact of such body areas with potentially infectious materials.

6.3.2 Handling Sharps

Any object capable of penetrating the skin is considered a sharp. Broken equipment that is capable of penetrating the skin is considered a sharp. Some examples include: needles, scalpels, broken glass, and broken capillary tubes. The following work practice controls are required whenever a sharp is contaminated with potentially infectious materials (called a contaminated sharp). These procedures are recommended for all sharps handling, regardless of contamination status.

1. Contaminated needles and other contaminated sharps will not be bent, recapped, or removed unless no alternative is feasible and the action is required for a specific laboratory procedure. When recapping or removal of sharps is required, it must be done using a mechanical device or one-handed method.
2. Shearing or breaking of contaminated needles is prohibited.
3. Immediately or as soon as possible after use, all contaminated sharps must be placed into a sharps container in accordance with the specification in section 8.0. Prior to decontamination or disposal, the used sharps must be stored and handled in a method that does not require employees to touch the sharps.

6.3.3 Other Work Practice Controls

• Eating, drinking, smoking, chewing gum, applying cosmetics or lip balm, and handling contact lenses are prohibited in work areas where there is a reasonable likelihood of occupational exposure.
• Food and drink will not be kept in refrigerators, freezers, shelves, cabinets, on countertops or benchtops where potentially infectious materials are present.
• All procedures involving potentially infectious materials will be performed in such a manner as to minimize splashing, spraying, spattering, and generation of droplets of these substances.
• Mouth pipetting/suctioning of blood or other potentially infectious materials is prohibited.
• Equipment which may become contaminated with blood or other potentially infectious material must be examined prior to servicing or shipping and decontaminated as necessary, unless it can be demonstrated that decontamination of such equipment or portions of such equipment is not feasible. A readily observable label in accordance with section 13.0 will be attached to the equipment stating which portions remain contaminated. This information will be conveyed to all affected employees, the servicing representative, and/or the manufacturer, as appropriate, prior to handling, servicing, or shipping so that appropriate precautions will be taken.
• Specimens of potentially infectious materials will be placed in a container which prevents leakage during collection, handling, processing, storage, transport, or shipping. The container for storage, transport, or shipping will be labeled or color-coded according to section 13.0 and closed prior to being stored, transported, or shipped.
  • If outside contamination of the primary container occurs, the primary container will be placed within a second container which prevents leakage during handling, processing, storage, transport, or shipping and is labeled or color-coded according to section 13.0. If the specimen could puncture the primary container, the primary container will be placed within a secondary container which is puncture-resistant.

6.4 Personal Protective Equipment

When there is occupational exposure, the Campus Unit will provide, at no cost to the employees, appropriate personal protective equipment such as, but not limited to, gloves, gowns, laboratory coats, face shields/masks, resuscitation bags, and pocket masks. Personal protective equipment will be considered "appropriate" only if it does not permit blood or other potentially infectious materials to pass through to or reach the employee's work clothes, street clothes, undergarments, skin, eyes, mouth, or other mucous membranes under normal conditions of use and for the duration of time which the protective equipment will be used.

Campus Units will ensure that employees wear PPE, unless the Campus Unit documents that the employee temporarily and briefly declined to wear PPE in the extraordinary (not routine) circumstance when, in the employee's professional judgment, wearing the PPE would prevent the delivery of health care or public safety services or would pose an increased hazard to the safety of the worker or co-worker. All such instances will be investigated by EHS, documented, and determinations made to prevent such occurrences in the future.

The PPE that is provided to the employees by the Campus Unit must meet the following criteria:

1. PPE in the appropriate sizes is readily accessible at the worksite or is issued to employees.
2. Hypoallergenic gloves, glove liners, powderless gloves, or other similar alternatives will be readily accessible to those employees who are allergic to the gloves normally provided.
3. The employer will clean, launder, and dispose of personal protective equipment at no cost to the employee.
4. The employer will repair or replace personal protective equipment as needed to maintain its effectiveness, at no cost to the employee.

Employees and Campus Units must handle PPE properly:

1. If PPE is penetrated by blood or other potentially infectious materials, the PPE will be removed immediately or as soon as feasible.
2. All personal protective equipment will be removed prior to leaving the work area.
3. When personal protective equipment is removed it will be placed in an appropriately designated area or container for storage, washing, decontamination or disposal.

6.4.1 Gloves

Gloves must be worn when it can be reasonably anticipated that the employee may have hand contact with potentially infectious materials, mucous membranes, and non-intact skin and when handling or touching contaminated items or surfaces.

Disposable (single use) gloves, such as surgical or examination gloves, will be replaced as soon as practical when contaminated or as soon as feasible if they are torn, punctured, or when their ability to function as a barrier is compromised. Disposable (single use) gloves will not be washed or decontaminated for re-use.

Utility gloves may be decontaminated for re-use if the integrity of the glove is not compromised. However, they must be discarded if they are cracked, peeling, torn, punctured, exhibit other signs of deterioration or when their ability to function as a barrier is compromised.

6.4.2 Other PPE

Masks in combination with eye protection devices, such as goggles or glasses with solid side shields, or chin-length face shields, will be worn whenever splashes, spray, spatter, or droplets of blood or other potentially infectious materials may be generated and eye, nose, or mouth contamination can be reasonably anticipated.

Appropriate protective clothing such as, but not limited to, gowns, aprons, lab coats, clinic jackets, or similar outer garments will be worn in occupational exposure situations. The type and characteristics will depend upon the task and degree of exposure anticipated.

Surgical caps or hoods and/or shoe covers or boots will be worn in instances when gross contamination can reasonably be anticipated (e.g., autopsies).