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Hepatitis B - Management
How is the risk of occupational exposure to hepatitis B minimized?
- To minimize the risk of occupational exposure, healthcare workers should be immunized against hepatitis B and they should:
- Treat all blood and body fluids as being potentially infectious.
- Wash their hands after each patient contact, and after contact with blood or body fluids.
- Wear personal protective equipment (such as disposable gloves, plastic apron, and goggles) when there is the possibility of splashing with blood or body fluids.
- Cover any cuts or abrasions with a waterproof plaster.
- Immediately dispose of 'sharps' (for example needles, scalpel blades) into puncture-proof bins; which should not be overfilled. Needles should not be re-sheathed.
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