Why Wear Personal Protective Equipment?

Did you know you could have infectious microorganisms in your blood?
These pathogens are:  to name a few, hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) and human immunodeficiency (HIV), and one we do not want to even think about:  Ebola.

We need to pay attention when we are working around any kind of needles and sharps. We must be careful always keeping our eyes on the object we are working with.  We can encounter pathogens mostly at work, but also at home.  If you are taking someone’s blood, or testing someone for sugar levels, this involves blood that can spill, splash, or drip onto your skin.  You must at that point wash the area with lots of soap and water.  Proper hand washing includes washing all the way up and including the wrist, and washing for at least 20 seconds.

Even when we administer First Aid, maybe to a child, we still need to be careful with spilled blood.  It is also wise not to eat and or drink in any area where blood or other potentially infectious materials are.  Blood is not the only liquid that we need to concern ourselves with.  Any and all body fluids, unfixed human tissues, all infected materials, can expose us to infectious microorganisms.  Once these microorganism’s enter into our body through any portal we are then exposed. 

If you are working in any health care occupation (doctors, nurses, nursing assistant, or even dentists and dental hygienists), as well as housekeeping personnel in those facilities, you are at a higher risk of exposure to blood borne pathogens. We need to be cautious when working with blood, or other bodily fluids. If you are punctured by a sharp object (needles, broken glass, metal shavings, etc.), or get blood or any bodily fluid in your eyes, nose, mouth, or on any broken skin, you are possibly exposed.  Then, if you feel you have been exposed, you should seek immediate medical attention.  

We do have methods to protect ourselves from that exposure. That is why OSHA requires those with a higher risk of exposure to wear personal protective equipment, otherwise known as PPE.

So what is PPE and what does it consist of? 
Personal Protective Equipment refers to what you should be wearing to protect yourself from pathogens. It can be non-latex gloves, eye protective goggles, face shields, aprons, or any other clothing that covers your person, keeping blood from splashing onto your skin or mucous glands, such as your eyes, nose or mouth.

The Protective Equipment is considered appropriate if it protects all areas that might be exposed. It is appropriate only if it does not permit blood or other potentially infectious materials to pass through or reach the person’s skin, eyes, mouth, or other mucous membranes under normal conditions of use, and for the duration of time that the protective equipment will be used.  Remember, gloves and face masks are disposable.  Clinic jackets can be laundered.  Eyewear protection can be decontaminated. 

If you think your job is unsafe or if you have questions or concerns, you can contact OSHA at 1-800-321-6742.  Your contact will be kept confidential. 

You may find this and further information needed at www.osha.gov.