Work practice controls are procedures that reduce the risk of exposure by altering the way in which a task is performed to make it safer. There is a need to implement certain work practices/work practice procedures to make effective use of engineering controls. Wherever there is the risk of exposure to BBPs or OPIM, the following work practice controls should be in place:
- No smoking, eating, or drinking
- No applying cosmetics or lip balm
- No handling of contact lenses
- No keeping of food and beverages in refrigerators, freezers, shelves, cabinets, or countertops where blood or OPIM are present
- No mouth pipetting
- No recapping, bending, or breaking of needles
- No use of personal electronic devices
Additional work practice controls include:
- Enforcing hand washing procedures following the removal of gloves
- Restricting access to only authorized personnel (surgical areas, laboratory, pathology)
- Creating a neutral zone in surgery
- Decontaminating equipment before servicing
- Enforcing a single-hand method to activate needle safety shields
