OSHA and CDC Infection Control Standards and Barrier Precautions in the Dental Healthcare Setting, 3rd edition

Course overview

There are approximately 700,000 dental healthcare personnel (DHCP) in the United States, a total that includes approximately 153,000 dentists, 208,000 dental hygienists, 330,000 dental assistants, and 36,000 dental laboratory technicians (U.S. Department of Labor, 2017). DHCP work primarily in outpatient, ambulatory care facilities using instruments that generate spatter, mists, aerosols, or particulate matter. In addition, most dental procedures require the use of double-ended sharp instruments that become soiled with blood, saliva and other body fluids during the course of dental treatment. In such settings it is likely that patients and dental personnel will be exposed to blood and other potentially pathogenic infectious material unless standard precautions are taken. Fortunately, by understanding certain principles of disease transmission and using appropriate infection control practices, dental personnel can prevent disease transmission. The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) 2003 Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Healthcare Settings (Kohn et al., 2003) have been accepted as the standard of care by dental boards across the country to prevent and control infectious diseases in dental offices (CDC, 2013b). In 2016, the CDC issued additional documents summarizing the 2003 guidelines and providing a checklist for clinicians to evaluate infection control practices in their settings (CDC 2016). In addition to the CDCs recommendations, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1991 issued its Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, a series of federally mandated steps employers must follow to protect workers from exposure to blood and other potentially infectious materials (U.S. Department of Labor, 2016a). Taken together, the CDC and OSHA documents are the road maps of infection control and provide guidance for use of barrier techniques in the dental healthcare setting. This basic-level course helps to protect both patient and practitioner safety by DHCP with a review of the guidelines contained in these well-established documents as well as of recent research on infection control challenges in the dental setting.