Bloodborne Pathogens Precautions

A bloodborne pathogen is a pathogen (virus or other substance) that can spread by coming into contact with body fluids. Taking precautions while dealing with bloodborne pathogens is of paramount importance to medical staff. Something as simple as a cut sustained from a blade used by a patient with bloodborne pathogens can trigger any of the bloodborne diseases that the patient may be carrying.

When to Take Precautions

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has clear-cut guidelines for dealing with these pathogens. The CDC groups bloodborne pathogens broadly with other pathogens and has developed a set of guidelines that health care professionals must follow. Under CDC guidelines, all patient blood should be considered potentially infectious and/or potentially contaminated with hepatitis, HIV and other bloodborne pathogens. As such, CDC guidelines for care and caution must be exercised whenever you are dealing with blood.

Precautions

• To understand the importance of precautions, It is imperative to understand the sources through which transmission of pathogens takes place. Bloodborne pathogens can spread through vaginal and other internal fluids, as well as through semen. Generally, urine, feces and sweat don't carry bloodborne pathogens. Although sweat in itself does not carry bloodborne pathogens, when the viral agents are on the surface of the skin, they can be transmitted from one person to another.

  As a result of the high risk of contagion, several general precautions must be taken in dealing with bloodborne pathogens. First, all medical staff should immediately wash their hands, or any body part they believe came into contact with a contaminated person, with soap and water. Food, water and other such items should be kept at a distance from potential sources of infection. Staff should always wear gloves and avoid picking up glass with bare hands. While gloves are important, gloves alone are not adequate protection because infection can spread if the glove touches the eyes, mouth, an open wound or other inflamed skin, or nose of the infected patient.

Other Precautions

• Contaminated objects should be disposed of by putting them in a special biohazard-labeled container. Disposal should be done while wearing latex gloves, washed with a disinfectant bleach. The gloves should be disposed of immediately afterward.
  An "Exposure Control Plan," which is a comprehensive set of guidelines to educate health workers of the potential dangers of dealing with unclean bloodborne pathogens, should also be put into place in hospitals and health care facilities.