Infection Prevention in Point
of Care Testing
Point of Care Testing (POCT)
• Diagnostic testing at or near the site of patient
care
• Uses portable handheld devices
• In facility setting, devices used for multiple
patients
• Glucose testing most common
Infection Control Concerns
• Shared POCT devices are a potential vehicle for
transmission of blood-borne pathogens, such as
Hepatitis B
• Some outbreaks of Hepatitis B in healthcare
settings tied to lapses in standard precautions
when glucometers and lancing devices were
used for multiple patients
Evaluate Equipment
• Review POCT equipment such as lancing
devices and glucometers to determine if
equipment is designed for:
– Single-use (disposable)
– Health care professional use, intended for multiple
patients
– Patient self-testing, intended for use by one patient
• Equipment designed for patient self-testing
should not be employed for facility POCT
Hand Hygiene and Gloves
• Wear gloves during fingerstick blood glucose
monitoring
• Change gloves that have touched potentially
blood-contaminated objects or fingerstick
wounds before touching clean surfaces.
• Remove and discard gloves after every patient
• Perform hand hygiene immediately after the
removal of gloves
Lancing Devices
• Disposable single-use lancing device:
– Discard entire device after one and only one
use
• Multiple use-capable lancing devices:
– Both FDA and CDC recommend multiple usecapable lancing devices be labeled for use
only on a single patient
Glucometer
• Shared glucometer is a potential vehicle for HBV
transmission
• Meter manufacturer must indicate that use on
more than one patient is permissible
• Meter must be cleaned and disinfected after
each and every use
Insulin Pens
• Risk of transmission of blood-borne pathogens
from shared use
• FDA: insulin pens and insulin cartridges are
never to be shared among patients
• Even if needles are changed between patients,
any blood contamination of the pen reservoir
could result in transmission of already existing
blood-borne pathogens from the previous user
Thank you