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3-505 - Exposure to Blood Borne and Air Borne Pathogens

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Home/Policies/Volume Three - Work Rules and Benefits / Chapter 500 - Injury and Illness/Exposure to Blood Borne and Air Borne Pathogens
3-504 - Reserved for Future Use
3-506 - Common Occupational Pathogens

3-505 - Exposure to Blood Borne and Air Borne Pathogens

Policy

Officers may be called upon to directly interact with persons who are known or suspected of having communicable infectious diseases. Such interactions may occur when officers are acting as first responders, when they are called upon to transport possibly infectious persons, or to enforce isolation or quarantine orders. Other MPD employees might have contact with contaminated clothing or other personal effects of infected persons as a result of these officer contacts.

The policy of the Minneapolis Police Department regarding exposure to blood borne and air borne pathogens in the occupational setting is to provide precautions and preventative measures, offer testing, counseling and follow-up for employees exposed in the course of their work for the MPD.

The following sections provide Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) guidelines for MPD employees. These guidelines should be followed to prevent exposures and provide a post-exposure plan in the event an employee suffers a significant exposure.

 

Definitions

Refer to the Commonly Used Terms page for general definitions.

  • Significant Exposure:

    Having sustained a contact which carries a potential for a transmission of bloodborne pathogens by one or more of the following means:

    • A skin puncture by a needle or sharp object that has had contact with blood or body fluid from another person
    • Blood or bodily fluids of another person in contact with the mucus membranes or eyes
    • Any contamination of open skin (cuts, abrasions, blisters, open dermatitis) by blood or body fluids, or bites that break the skin
    • Blood or blood-containing fluids in contact with skin longer than 5 minutes

    Note: Fluids such as urine, saliva, vomit and stool are considered significant only when they contain visible blood. Significant exposure to diseases communicable by airborne transmission (including tuberculosis, chicken pox, measles, and pertussis) will be confirmed and follow-up will be determined with the help of Public Health.

3-504 - Reserved for Future Use
3-506 - Common Occupational Pathogens

Revision Types and Descriptions

  • New: Policy had been added.
  • Combined: Two or more policies were merged.
  • Definitions Update: A glossary definition was updated.
  • Terms Update: A term, not necessarily tied to the glossary, was updated in the Manual.
  • Edited - Major: Significant content or procedural changes.
  • Edited - Minor: Small edits, clarifications, or formatting changes.
  • Renamed: Policy title changed.
  • Renumbered: Policy number was changed.
  • Split: Single policy was divided into multiple.
  • Eliminated: Policy was removed and is no longer in effect.
  • PRH Implementation: Edits for the Policy and Resource Hub; no content changes.