Portable Sanitation Association International

Page 9 ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News BIWEEKLY EDITION FEBRUARY 5, 2020 Continued on page 19 These items include appropriate, commercially available effective safety devices (gloves, masks, face shields, waterproof clothing, etc.) designed to eliminate or minimize occupational exposure. Employers must also document that they have solicited input from front line workers in identifying, evaluating, and selecting effective engineering and work practice controls. • Implement the use of universal precautions (treating all human blood and OPIM as if known to be infectious for bloodborne pathogens). This means using gloves, masks or face shields, and protective clothing if blood or OPIM exposure is anticipated. Use of engineering and work practice controls to limit exposure is also part of universal precautions. • Identify and use engineering controls. These are devices that isolate or remove the bloodborne pathogens hazard from the workplace. They include things like having tongs for removing sharps safely from the tank and disposal containers on the trucks. • 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 and cleaning contaminated surfaces and items. The controls will vary by portable sanitation company due to the variances in types of equipment, but your exposure control plan should cover the procedures you have put in place and trained employees to use to make the most of your equipment and use it in a manner that minimizes risk. • Provide personal protective equipment (PPE) for employees at risk of exposure to bloodborne pathogens and OPIM. The PSAI standard for PPE includes—at a minimum—hard hats, waterproof gloves, eye protection (such as safety glasses or face shields), and waterproof boots with steel or composite toes. Some insurance companies also require waterproof clothing, as well, and some job sites, such as mines and power plants, have additional PPE requirements unrelated to bloodborne pathogens. Whatever PPE is required to protect your employees, it is your responsibility as the employer to clean, repair, and replace this equipment as needed. Provision, maintenance, repair, and replacement must be at no cost to the worker. • Provide information and training to workers. 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, medical evaluation, and post-exposure follow-up procedures. Employers must offer this training at the time of initial assignment to the position where the worker may be exposed, at least annually thereafter, and when new or modified tasks or procedures affect a worker's occupational exposure. Workers must have the opportunity to ask the trainer questions. Also, training must be presented at an educational level and in a language that workers understand. Bloodborne pathogens training resources can usually be obtained through your local Red Cross, or you can contract with commercial vendors to supply it for you. Dealing with Bloodborne Pathogens…continued from page 8

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