Career Safe notes

Exposure Control Plan

Exposure Control Plan

An exposure control plan is a written plan to eliminate or minimize occupational exposures. The employer must write a plan that lists the jobs where workers may be exposed, along wit a list of the tasks and procedures performed by those workers that result in their exposure.

Annual Plan Update

Employers must use input from frontline workers to update the exposure control plan annually. These updates must reflect changes in tasks, procedures, and positions that affect occupational exposure, and also technological changes that eliminate or reduce occupational exposure.

Universal Precautions

Employers are required to implement the use of universal precautions (treating all human blood and other potentially infectious material as if known to be infectious for bloodborne pathogens).

Engineering Controls

Engineering controls are devices that isolate or remove the bloodborne pathogens hazard from the workplace and the standard requires that employers identify and use such engineering controls. They include sharps disposal containers, self-sheathing needles, and safer medical devices, such as sharps with engineered sharps-injury protection and needleless systems.

Work Practice Controls

Employers are required to identify and ensure the use of work practice controls. These are practices that reduce the possibility of exposure by changing the way a task is performed, such as appropriate practices for handling and disposing of contaminated sharps, handling specimens, handling laundry, and cleaning contaminated surfaces and items.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Employers must provide personal protective equipment (PPE), such as gloves, gowns, eye protection, and masks. Employers must clean, repair, and replace this equipment as needed. Provision, maintenance, repair and replacement are at no cost to the worker.

Hepatitis B Vaccinations

Your employer must provide Hepatitis B vaccinations to all workers with occupational exposure. This vaccination must be offered after the worker has received the required bloodborne pathogens training and within 10 days of initial assignment to a job with occupational exposure.

Post-exposure Evaluation and Follow-up

Employers must make available post-exposure evaluation and follow-up to any occupationally exposed worker who experience an exposure incident.

Labels and Signs to Communicate Hazards

Warning labels must be affixed to containers of regulated waste; containers of contaminated reusable sharps; refrigerators and freezers containing blood or other potentially infectious material; other containers used to store, transport, or ship blood or other potentially infectious material; contaminated equipment that is being shipped or serviced, and bags or containers of contaminated laundry, except as provided in the standard. Facilities may use red bags or red containers instead of labels. In HIV and Hepatitis B research laboratories and production facilities, signs must be posted at all access doors when other potentially infectious material or infected animals are present in the work area or containment module.

Training

Employers must ensure that their workers receive regular training that covers all elements of the standard including, but not limited to: information on bloodborne pathogens and diseases, methods used to control occupational exposure, Hepatitis B vaccine, and medical evaluation and post-exposure follow-up procedures. Employers must offer this training at the time of hiring, at least annually thereafter, and when new or modified tasks or procedures affect a worker's occupational exposure.

Medical and Training Records

Employers also have an obligation to maintain worker medical and training records. The employer also must maintain a sharps injury log.

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