Facilities Management » Biological Hazards – Infectious Diseases

Workers in hospital settings may be exposed to a variety of common and emerging infectious disease hazards, particularly if proper infection prevention and control measures are not implemented in the workplace. In some cases facilities personnel may be called into areas of the hospital where they could be exposed to infected patients. Examples of infectious disease hazards include seasonal and pandemic influenza; norovirus; Ebola; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), tuberculosis, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), and other potentially drug-resistant organisms.

Infectious diseases are caused by agents that are transmissible through one or more different routes, including the contact, droplet, airborne, and bloodborne routes. The transmission of infectious agents through the bloodborne route—a specific subset of contact transmission—is defined in the Bloodborne Pathogens (BBP) standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030 ().

An effective infection control program normally relies upon a multi-layered and overlapping strategy of engineering, administrative and work practice controls, and PPE. It is OSHA’s intent in this eTool to highlight some – not all – of the controls that would be necessary to the development and implementation of an effective program. Implementing the controls highlighted here alone will not typically protect workers from infection hazards.

Follow standard and transmission-based precautions to prevent worker infections (see also the OSHA page: Worker protections against occupational exposure to infectious diseases). Early identification and isolation of sources of infectious agents (including sick patients), proper hand hygiene, worker training, effective engineering and administrative controls, safer work practices, and appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), among other controls, help reduce the risk of transmission of infectious agents to workers.

Employers must comply with the BBP standard to the extent that there is "occupational exposure" (i.e., to the extent workers should reasonably anticipate contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM) that may result from the performance of duties). Employers must also comply with the PPE Standard, 29 CFR 1910 Subpart I, and the OSH Act’s General Duty Clause, 29 U.S.C. 654(a)(1), to protect their workers from infectious disease hazards. The General Duty Clause requires each employer to "furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees."

OSHA provides agent-specific guidance for a variety of pathogens that workers in hospital settings may encounter. See OSHA's Safety and Health Topics Pages for Biological Agents and Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention for additional information.

In this module, OSHA provides additional guidance specifically for:

Bloodborne pathogens are pathogenic microorganisms present in human blood that can cause disease in humans. These pathogens include, but are not limited to, Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (e.g. Ebola). [29 CFR 1910.1030(b)]

Hazards

Exposure to blood or other potential infectious material (OPIM) can occur, for example, during maintenance work, cleaning up spilled materials or handling waste containing these materials.

Requirements under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030

The Bloodborne Pathogens Standard requires precautions when there is occupational exposure to blood or OPIM (as defined by the standard). Under the standard, OPIM means (1) the following human body fluids: semen, vaginal secretions, cerebrospinal fluid, synovial fluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, amniotic fluid, saliva in dental procedures, any body fluid that is visibly contaminated with blood, and all body fluids in situations where it is difficult or impossible to differentiate between body fluids; (2) any unfixed tissue or organ (other than intact skin) from a human (living or dead); and (3) HIV-containing cell or tissue cultures, organ cultures, and HIV- or HBV-containing culture medium or other solutions; and blood, organs, or other tissues from experimental animals infected with HIV or HBV.

OSHA requires employers to ensure that the biosafety officer or other responsible person conducts an exposure determination to determine the exposure of workers to blood or OPIM throughout the hospital setting. [29 CFR 1910.1030(c)(2)(i)].

For more information, see Hospital-wide Hazards - Bloodborne Pathogens.

Hazard

Inhalation of the Legionella bacteria located in contaminated aerosolized water may cause a form of pneumonia called Legionnaires’ Disease. Legionella bacteria may be present in:

  • Cooling towers, humidifiers and/or air conditioning systems or domestic hot water systems.
  • Areas where spray nozzles are used, such as kitchens, janitorial closets, and showers.

Water management programs that effectively prevent Legionella growth in water systems rely on control and prevention measures, including good system design, proper facility and equipment maintenance, and routine cleaning and disinfection.

Additional Information