Credits Hours: 1.00

Course Description:
Emergency responders deal with infection and disease every day in their daily response and treatment of patients. Understanding how infection and diseases are transmitted and being able to actively use universal precautions will decrease the risk of exposure to the emergency responder. This course will describe disease and the infection process, leading to a discussion of a variety of bloodborne diseases. Universal precautions are explained along with the risks of exposure and how to mitigate those risks, including legislation that has been enacted that addresses the risks. The course closes with a discussion of vehicle and equipment decontamination.

Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this course, the participant will be able to:

• Discuss bloodborne diseases, including HIV and hepatitis B and the transmission of these bloodborne pathogens diseases.
• Describe universal precautions to be used on the scene.
• Identify the risks of exposure to bloodborne pathogens.
• Describe the decontamination process of emergency responder equipment and vehicles.