Reasons Why Healthcare Workers Must Understand Everything About BBP

May 10, 2021

  

Healthcare workers have for ages been on the frontline towards ensuring the health and safety of billions of people across the globe. Every day, they risk their lives while protecting patients. However, little concern is taken on protecting these dedicated workers from the exposure of dreadful diseases and viruses. Healthcare training centers and organizations must develop ways that will help protect their workers from any possible infection. Before enrolling in the healthcare system, students have to be taught how to protect themselves from exposure to harmful diseases.

Following the onset of coronavirus, we have seen and witnessed several cases of doctors and other healthcare workers dying from the pandemic after being exposed. The news calls for World Health Organizations and other health care bodies to protect these workers. Apart from the coronavirus, other harmful diseases risk the lives of healthcare workers. One of them is the BBP. This piece will bring to light reasons why healthcare workers must understand everything about BBP. But first, let's look at the definition.

What is BBP?

Also known as bloodborne pathogens, they are defined as pathogenic microorganisms present in the blood. When combined with other infectious materials, these pathogens cause diseases to the human body. Examples include; Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV. The infectious materials could be:

• Any clinical solution containing Hepatitis B, C, and HIV
• Body fluids with blood contamination
• Human tissues and organs
• Pericardial and cerebrospinal fluids
• Amniotic fluid

Medical experts also report that vaginal secretions and dental fluids are potentially infectious materials that can carry these contagious pathogens. It is important to note that vomit, urine, saliva, and feces are not at risk for any BBP infection unless there are traces of blood in them. These pathogens pose a significant threat to human health, not to mention their prevalence in most health institutions. Exposure to these pathogens poses risks to employees despite implementing regulatory strategies that curb the dangers of exposure. Without proper prevention strategies, doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers will be at a greater risk of infection.

Medical supervisors and principal investors should take responsibility and monitor every activity in healthcare places, to determine if workers are under any possible BBP exposure. There is a need for programs that require all the employees with reasonable exposure to tissues, human blood, and pathogenic agents to undergo training.

Why Understand Everything About BBP?

Compliance

The first reason why healthcare workers need to understand everything about BBP is that the law requires so. Every medical practitioner should go through various tests and bloodborne pathogens training programs before joining the health industry. Certification from the training and such programs should prove that the employees are familiar with all the requirements. It is essential for every worker who handles potentially harmful materials like blood to have undergone thorough training.

BBP certification is crucial in protecting professionals' safety since it provides one with a guard against pathogens and any other infectious disease. Ultimately, the training ensures employees have the right qualifications to work in their specialized sectors. It is against the law to send employees into dangerous environments without certification. BBP training is one vital step workers can take to protect their facility from legalities and fines involved in breaking the law.

You can attend a physical class for training or take online courses. There are many training options with a convenient format. If your institution doesn't offer the systems, make sure you look for a prominent institution for training. Getting certification from a reputable organization can make a significant difference when looking for employment. Reliable teachers offer you a step-by-step guideline on each BBP training course to ensure the retention of individuals. The health industry also requires that a doctor be healthy and physically fit to handle most of the daily chores at work.

Transmission Process

Understanding BBP will help workers know about the process of pathogen transmission. Different pathogens get transmitted in different ways. During the procedure, there are stages that one goes through before you are fully exposed. Equipping yourself with such knowledge can significantly help save yourself and others from any possible risks. Bloodborne pathogens are transmitted in various ways. It could be through blood or any other infectious human fluids, touching your mouth, eyes, and nose. The pathogens can also spread through paper cuts, rashes, abrasions, and burns.

It is also possible to acquire BBP by handling or touching any contaminated surface. The other way is through injection of the BBP into the bloodstream. You need to note that once transmitted, the patient may fail to show any signs or symptoms, so it is possible to consider all health workers infectious. For this reason, all workers should avoid contact with patients and any other person walking into the health care unit.

Exposure Control Plan

Every medical practitioner needs a control plan in case of any exposure. When working in high-risk areas, you need to have already contemplated ways to protect yourself from infection. To lower the dangers of your occupational exposure, you need to implement a control plan for your workplace with information from the training. All the details about the protective need to be considered with maximum attention: the implemented plan should outline all the practice controls, equipment, and protective gear, training, vaccinations, and other preventive measures as required by healthcare laws and regulations.

As a worker in the health care unit, you need to get familiar with all the vaccinations for the bloodborne diseases mentioned in this article, which are; Hepatitis B and C and HIV aids. Hepatitis B can be more persistent than HIV because it can survive on a surface for one week. HIV cannot survive for more than five minutes. At room temperature, the virus dies once exposed to air. Possible infection occurs with direct blood contact for the two diseases. It can be hard to diagnose Hepatitis B because of its mild symptoms in patients. So, it is almost impossible to tell who has it. So, why not assume everyone is a carrier and take all the preventive measures? The engineered control plan, therefore, needs to have primary means that can curb any employee exposure.

Exposure Control Procedures

Once workers are aware of the occupational risks and how to control the pathogen, it becomes easy to use the engineered control measures as the primary means to control their exposure. An exposure incident means that an infection occurred while the worker was on duty involving blood presence. It could be a splash of blood in the nose or the eye. Health workers must know the necessary steps to take if they suspect any exposure to these pathogens. The measures need to be taken immediately.

In the case of contact, you need to understand the necessary immunization and vaccination to give both employees and patients. Understanding everything about BBP helps you learn the effectiveness of these vaccines, their safety, benefits, and how everyone needs to be given. You should also be aware of any signed declination by employees against a particular vaccine. In case you suspect exposure, use the following steps:

• If there is any injury, make sure to wash it clean.
• Use sterile or clean water to clean eyes for not less than 20 minutes if you suspect any splash.
• Report the case to the person identified in the exposure control plan. If you cannot reach out to them, contact the emergency medical services and report the incident immediately.
• Health workers need to note the incident with precise details of what and how the exposure happened. It should include the date and circumstances of infection.
• Once you have made the report, you can start making follow-ups as stated in the control plane.

The Use of Protective Equipment

Employees should understand how to handle equipment to prevent exposure against BBP. It is necessary to learn to do a medical evaluation and follow the guidelines on using the equipment to minimize more chances of infection. The policies on the use of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) stress the benefits of the practice, competence, and training employees, especially when handling patients.

If not careful, the pathogen can enter the body through unprotected membranes like the eye, mouth, and nose. The PPE should fully cover the skin. Workers should wear surgical masks: resuscitation mouthpieces, gloves, gowns, eye protection, and lab coats. The healthcare organization needs to make sure that the PPE fits the workers properly and matches the kind of duties they are performing.

Containers should have labels, should be thoroughly and frequently cleaned and disinfected for precautionary purposes. Clothing should be disinfected and disposed of after use. There should also be a set plan that includes needleless devices, safer capillary tubes, and shielded needles, among others. Safety should start right at the triage centers to prevent the spread of contamination.

The protection of healthcare workers and the prevention of infectious diseases need reliable and effective administrative steps and practices. A test on the bloodborne pathogen is a standard requirement for every worker. If you are not already educated on how to treat and prevent bloodborne pathogens from spreading in the workplace, you must enroll for training.

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