DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY AND SUPPORT SERVICES
CITY OF CHICAGO
Infectious Disease Control
Any employee with the potential for occupational exposure to blood or other potential infectious
materials is at risk for transmission of blood borne pathogens which may lead to disease. In
accordance with the OSHA Blood borne Pathogen standard 29, CFR 1910.1030, the following
Infectious Disease Control Plan has been developed.
A copy of the Infectious Disease Control Plan is accessible to all employees. It is distributed to
all current employees as a part of the Risk Management Plan.
Occupational Exposure
Occupational exposure is defined as the reasonable anticipation of skin, eye, mucous
membrane, or other contact with blood or other potentially infectious bodily fluids that may
result from the performance of an employee’s duties.
Exposure Determination
In the following job classifications, employees may come into contact with blood or other
potentially infectious bodily fluids:
1.
Early Childhood Teaching Staff: The duties of these employees require them to render
physical care and to clean up after incontinent acts and vomiting, and/or injuries producing
blood.
2.
Facilities Staff: The duties of these employees require them to clean up and dispose of
waste, and fix and maintain areas which may be contaminated with blood or other potentially
infectious materials.
3.
All other staff in the provision of first aid.
In the following procedures performed during the course of the child care program day,
occupational exposure may occur during:
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The daily health check.
Care of wounds.
Clean up of body fluids such as emesis, feces, urine, or blood.
Disposal of waste.
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First aid.
(This list does not exhaust all tasks which may result in the potential for exposure.)
Contaminated means the presence or the reasonably anticipated presence of blood or other
potentially infectious materials on an item or surface. The blood or other potentially infectious
materials may be liquid, semi-liquid, or dried.
Occupational Exposure Plan
In the event of an exposure to blood or other potentially infectious body fluids, immediately
clean a skin injury thoroughly with soap and running water for 10-15 seconds using friction. In
the event of a mouth splash, immediately rinse the mouth with running water. Immediately
flush eyes with running water, sterile water, or saline solution in the event of an eye splash.
Notify the program director or supervisor to assist you in obtaining first aid if necessary.
Per Exposure Control Plan, employee should go to nearest E.R. A written incident report must
be completed within one working day of the incident and submitted to the program director and
executive director. A complete history of the circumstances surrounding the accidental
exposure must be submitted, including where, when, and how the incident occurred, the nature
of the injury, the source of the exposure, personal protective equipment in use at the time of
the incident, actions taken by the employee. The employer may be referred to their primary
physician for follow-up care or evaluation. Any necessary follow up care or lab work will be
conducted by an accredited laboratory will be done at no cost to an employee.
Follow-up procedures will include a confidential medical evaluation documenting the
circumstances of exposure, identifying and testing the source if feasible, testing the exposed
employee’s blood if he/she consents, and counseling on the reported illness. Health care
professionals must be provided specified information from the agency to facilitate the
evaluation and the health care professional’s written opinion on the need for hepatitis B
vaccination following the exposure. Information such as the employee’s ability to receive the
hepatitis B vaccine must be supplied to the employer. However, all diagnoses must remain
confidential.
In accordance with OSHA standards, records for all employees who have been exposed must be
kept for the duration of employment plus an additional thirty years. Records must be kept
confidential and include: name, social security number, hepatitis B vaccination status (including
dates), results of any examinations, medical testing and follow-up procedures, and a copy of
information provided to the health care professional.
Universal Precautions
The practice of using “Universal Precautions” is followed to prevent or limit contact with blood
and other potentially infections materials since any exposure could result in transmission of
blood borne pathogens, which could lead to disease or death. It is not always known if human
blood and bodily fluids are contaminated, therefore, all blood and bodily fluids are to be treated
as if it is known to be infectious for HBV, HIV, or other blood borne pathogens. Universal
precautions require the use of personal protective equipment and hand washing to prevent or
minimize employee exposure of skin and mucus membranes to blood and other potentially
infectious materials.
Human body fluids include the following substances: amniotic fluid, bodily tissues, broken skin,
cerebrospinal fluid, nasal secretions, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, saliva,
sputum, semen, synovial fluid, urine, vaginal secretions, vomit, wound drainage, feces, and any
bodily fluid that is visibly contaminated with blood. In circumstances where it is difficult or
impossible to differentiate between bodily fluid types, it should be assumed that all bodily fluids
are potentially infectious. Universal precautions should be used by all HACC personnel when
examining, treating, and caring for all participants, staff, or community member regardless of
age, race, gender, HIV status, lifestyle, or ethnic background.
Universal precautions involves a two part system of using proper hand washing techniques and
using protective equipment to minimize exposure to bodily fluids.
Hand washing
Proper hand washing technique is as follows:
1. Vigorously lather hands with soap and rub them together, using friction to all
surfaces for fifteen seconds. Hold hands lower than wrists. Do not touch fingertips
to inside of sink.
2. Rinse hands thoroughly under a moderate stream of water at a comfortable
temperature. Hot water is unnecessarily rough on hands.
3. Dry hands well with paper towels, and then turn off faucets with those towels.
4. Discard paper towels in trash.
5. In areas where sinks are not readily accessible, a waterless antiseptic solution may
be used between tasks that would normally require hand washing. Hands should be
washed with soap and water at the first opportunity.
6. The use of gloves does not replace hand washing. Hands must be washed
immediately after removing gloves.
Signs visually illustrating proper hand washing technique are located in all early childhood
bathrooms. Staff members are required to wash their hands at the following times:
1) Upon arrival at the center;
2) After using the bathroom or helping a child use the bathroom;
3) After changing a diaper;
4) After wiping or blowing their nose, or helping a child to wipe or blow his/her nose;
5) After handling items soiled with body fluids or wastes (e.g., blood, drool, urine, stool or
omit);
6) After handling pets or other animals;
7) After handling or caring for a sick child;
8) Before and after eating or drinking;
9) Before preparing, handling or serving food;
10) Before dispensing any medication;
11) Before and after administering first aid; and
12) When changing rooms or caring for a different group of children.
Antiseptic hand cleaner with paper towels or sanitary cloth towels, or antiseptic towelettes may
be used in emergency cases only when soap and running water are not available. Soap and
running water should be used immediately when it becomes available.
Personal Protective Equipment
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is specialized clothing or equipment, including gloves,
masks, mouthpieces, and resuscitation bags, that is worn or used by an employee for protection
against occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials. PPE will be
provided to employees at no cost and must be used, as appropriate, to protect themselves
against exposure to blood borne pathogens. Not all tasks involve the same type or degree of
risk, and therefore, do not require the same kind or extent of protection.
PPE is considered appropriate only if it does not permit blood or other potentially infectious
materials to pass through or to reach the employee’s clothes, skin, eyes, mouth, or mucus
membranes. PPE usage guidelines are summarized at the end of this section. PPE includes,
but is not limited to gloves, gowns, laboratory coats, masks, protective eye wear (face shields,
safety glasses), or ventilation devices (resuscitation bags or seal-easy masks).
First-aid kits, as well as blood borne pathogen clean-up kits, which include absorbent powder,
protective exam gloves, protective eye wear, shoe covers, apron, isolation masks, MSDS sheets,
disposable towels, antiseptic wipes, disposable red biohazard bags with ties, disinfectant wipe,
and instruction sheets are located in all major areas or the agency, including the early childhood
office and all four early childhood classrooms. PPE should be removed before leaving a work
area. It is the employer’s responsibility to provide, launder, repair, replace, or dispose of PPE.
Latex gloves should be worn at all times when dealing with any bodily fluids, potentially
infectious material, or when handling/touching contaminated surfaces (including, but not limited
to changing diapers or clothing with urine or feces, applying first-aid, cleaning bathrooms, or
cleaning animal cages and working in the dental clinic). Hypoallergenic gloves will be provided
to all employees who are allergic to standard gloves, and should request them with his/her
program director. Gloves are to be removed without exposing the skin to the outer surface of
the glove. Soiled gloves must be placed in a sealable bag and disposed of so that further
exposure will not occur. All staff members must wash their hands upon removing the latex
gloves.
Warning labels, including the orange or orange-red biohazard symbol are affixed to containers
of regulated waste, refrigerators and freezers and other containers which are used to store or
transport blood or other potentially infectious materials. Red bags or containers may be used
instead. Laundry must always be handled with universal precautions, and therefore, does not
need to be labeled.
Work Practice Controls
The following work practice controls are adhered to by __________________ (insert program
name) in compliance with the OSHA Blood borne Pathogens Standard:
1. Proper hand washing immediately, or as soon as feasible, after removal of latex
gloves or any other personal protective equipment.
2. Following any contact of body area with blood or any other potentially infectious
material, employees must wash their hands and any exposed skin with soap and
water as soon as possible. They also must flush exposed mucus membranes with
water.
3. Contaminated sharps are placed in appropriate containers as soon as possible after
use. Sharps containers are to be replaced routinely and not allowed to overfill.
Containers for contaminated sharps must be puncture resistant, leak-proof on the
sides and bottom, and color-coded or labeled with a biohazard warning label.
4. Contaminated needles are not to be removed from syringes by hand. Contaminated
needles and sharps are not to be bent, broken, re-capped, or removed unless it can
be demonstrated that there is no feasible alternative.
5. Eating, drinking, smoking, and applying cosmetic or lip balm and handling contact
lenses is prohibited in work areas where there is potential for exposure to blood
borne pathogens.
6. Food and drink are not to be kept in refrigerators, freezers, on countertops, or in
other storage areas where blood or other potentially infectious materials are present.