Precautionary Practices of Healthcare Workers Who Disinfect Medical and Dental Devices Using High-Level Disinfectants

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol
• Personal Author:
  Henn, Scott A. ; Boiano, James M. ; Steege, Andrea L.
• Description:
  Background
  
  High-level disinfectants (HLDs) are used throughout the healthcare industry to chemically disinfect reusable, semicritical medical and dental devices to control and prevent healthcare-associated infections among patient populations. Workers who use HLDs are at risk of exposure to these chemicals, some of which are respiratory and skin irritants and sensitizers.
  
  Objective
  
  To evaluate exposure controls used and to better understand impediments to healthcare workers using personal protective equipment while handling HLDs.
  
  Design
  
  Web-based survey.
  
  Participants
  
  A targeted sample of members of professional practice organizations representing nurses, technologists/technicians, dental professionals, respiratory therapists, and others who reported handling HLDs in the previous 7 calendar days. Participating organizations invited either all or a random sample of members via email, which included a hyperlink to the survey.
  
  Methods
  
  Descriptive analyses were conducted including simple frequencies and prevalences.
  
  Results
  
  A total of 4,657 respondents completed the survey. The HLDs used most often were glutaraldehyde (59%), peracetic acid (16%), and ortho-phthalaldehyde (15%). Examples of work practices or events that could increase exposure risk included failure to wear water-resistant gowns (44%); absence of standard procedures for minimizing exposure (19%); lack of safe handling training (17%); failure to wear protective gloves (9%); and a spill/leak of HLD during handling (5%). Among all respondents, 12% reported skin contact with HLDs, and 33% of these respondents reported that they did not always wear gloves.
  
  Conclusion
  
  Findings indicated that precautionary practices were not always used, underscoring the importance of improved employer and worker training and education regarding HLD hazards.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Adult Ambulatory Care Facilities Article Data Collection Dental Facilities Disinfectants Environmental Monitoring Female Glutaral Guidelines As Topic Health Personnel Hospitals Humans Inservice Training Male Microfilament Proteins O-Phthalaldehyde Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Peracetic Acid Protective Devices Ventilation

  More +
• Source:
  Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 36(2):180-185.
• Pubmed ID:
  25633000
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC4976393
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  CC999999/Intramural CDC HHS/United States
• Volume:
  36
• Issue:
  2
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:99cbfba24ac624ef539c9efda5ae3d60e528265b62a7ed227c1f65044da69bef
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/40740/cdc_40740_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 116.29 KB ]