Blood & body fluids — protecting yourself (PPE, cleanup, exposure)
2 min readBloodborne pathogens and standard precautions
Treat ALL blood and body fluids as potentially infectious: gloves every time, add a mask/eye protection if splashing is possible, clean spills with disinfectant, and if you're exposed (needle stick, splash to eyes/mouth, broken skin) wash immediately and call your supervisor right away.
- 1Standard precautions: gloves for any contact with blood, urine, stool, vomit, wound drainage, or soiled items — every client, every time.
- 2Remove gloves without touching the outside, then wash hands. Gloves are single-use.
- 3Spill cleanup: gloves on, soak up with paper towels, clean with disinfectant (or 1:10 bleach solution), bag the waste, wash hands after.
- 4Soiled laundry: gloves, hold away from your body and clothes, wash separately in the hottest appropriate water.
- 5Sharps: never recap needles; put them in the sharps container (or a hard plastic container per the plan) — report loose needles you find.
- 6If exposed — needle stick, bite breaking skin, splash to eyes/nose/mouth: wash/flush the area immediately with water, then call your supervisor the same hour; timely medical follow-up matters.
Exposure follow-up is a workplace right, not a favor — your agency must have a procedure, and L&I protections apply. Report every exposure, even ones that seem minor.
Call 911 immediately if
Client is unconscious, not breathing normally, bleeding heavily, or you suspect a head, neck, or spine injury.
What to remember
- —Standard precautions: gloves for any contact with blood, urine, stool, vomit, wound drainage, or soiled items — every client, every time..
- —Remove gloves without touching the outside, then wash hands.
- —Spill cleanup: gloves on, soak up with paper towels, clean with disinfectant (or 1:10 bleach solution), bag the waste, wash hands after..