Focus on Wellness:
Infectious Diseases I
ATU members who work directly with the public or who clean and service public transportation vehicles, including school bus drivers, paramedics, intercity bus and transit operators, and transit maintenance employees, are at risk for exposure to infectious diseases.
The two primary types of diseases that ATU members may be exposed to while on the job are airborne/respiratory diseases and blood borne /contact diseases. Airborne/respiratory diseases are spread by an infectious person coughing, sneezing, talking, etc. and expelling spores or droplets that can be inhaled or settle on surfaces.
Examples are:
- Common Cold
- Tuberculosis (TB)
- Influenza (Flu)
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
Blood borne/contact diseases can only be spread through certain direct contact with infected blood or bodily fluids. The disease-causing organisms can enter the body through contact with mucous membranes (eyes, nose, or mouth), a break in the skin, or through sexual contact.
Examples are:
- HIV - Human Immunodeficiency Virus (the virus that causes AIDS)
- AIDS - Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (caused by HIV; the body's immune system can no longer resist diseases and infections)
- Hepatitis B and C (HBV and HCV respectively - these are the blood borne diseases of most concern).
Passengers, money, trash, food, fareboxes, seats, floors, door handles, hand rails, and other surfaces are all potential sources of contamination. While it is possible for an individual to be exposed to an infectious disease without being infected, it is important for ATU members and their employers to take certain precautions to minimize the potential for exposure.
Universal Precautions
Universal precautions are a set of protective measures for workers who may have contact with contaminated surfaces, blood, or bodily fluids.
They are as follows:
(1) Treat all human blood and certain human body fluids as infectious material. If a passenger or co-worker becomes sick or injured, always assume that they are carrying a communicable disease.
(2) Wash hands frequently. This is your most basic precaution for preventing all types of communicable diseases. If you come in contact with potentially contaminated objects or fluids, wash your hands immediately.
If you are aboard a vehicle or in an isolated location, it is crucial to travel immediately to a location with washroom facilities. Alcohol, antiseptic wipes, or other hand sanitizers can be used when soap and water are not available, but these are not ideal.
(3) Avoid hand-to-face contact. It is especially important to avoid contact between hands and mouth, nose, or eyes, as those are common routes for airborne or contact diseases to enter the body. ALWAYS wash hands before eating, smoking, applying cosmetics or lip balm, or handling contact lenses.
(4) Avoid contaminated areas. Do not walk through contaminated areas, as your shoes may become contaminated. This can track infectious materials into other areas, allow contamination to soak into socks and skin, and transmit infection to your hands when you remove your shoes.
(5) Handle trash carefully. Assume any bag may contain a needle or other sharp object. Never use hands or unprotected skin to compact or crush trash bags or garbage. Never hold trash bags close to the body. Keep loads in trash bags light to avoid bag breakage and back injury.
(6) Maintain barrier protection. The most basic protection is a barrier between yourself and the contaminated material. For example, if someone is bleeding, hand him or her a clean bandage or rag to absorb the blood. If available, wear disposable latex gloves. Unbroken skin can be a barrier against blood borne pathogens, but if the skin is not intact, infected blood can enter through open sores, cuts, abrasions, acne and/or damaged or broken skin, such as sunburn, blisters, hangnail, or paper cuts.
(7) Use appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). If you must come into contact with blood or other potentially infectious material, do so only if provided with appropriate personal protective equipment, such as latex gloves, safety glasses, disposable coveralls, and shoe covers.
