An exposure incident is defined as follows:
   • Skin pierced, cut, or scratched by a sharp object contaminated with blood or other
     potentially infectious body fluid
  • Spills or splashes of blood or other potentially infectious material onto non-intact skin (cuts,      hangnails, abrasions, chapped skin) or onto any mucous membrane.
When an exposure occurs, stop the dental procedure and wash wound immediately with soap and water.  If eyes are exposed to blood or contaminated body fluids, flush with water at an eyewash station for 15 minutes.  Notify School of Dentistry(SOD) supervisor of incident and proceed with the following. 

WEEKDAY EXPOSURES (6:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. M-F):
All WVU employees and students must immediately report the incident to Employee Health, 2B04 (second floor), Ruby Memorial Hospital, 598-4160 (pick no option).

Explain the incident to the patient and that it is our protocol to request that they have their blood tested.  Obtain a Patient Exposure Packet from the marked white envelope in Oral Diagnosis, Oral Surgery, or Pediatric Dentistry.  Have the patient sign all consent forms in the packet, and take the patient and exposure packet immediately to the laboratory on the fourth floor of the Physicians’ Office Center (POC) for appropriate tests.  If the patient does not have a hospital number, take him/her first to register at Ruby Memorial Hospital Admissions on the third floor before going to the lab.

The employee/student must then go for testing to Employee Health, Ruby Hospital, 2nd floor.

AFTER HOURS EXPOSURES (4:00 p.m.-6:30 a.m. weekdays, or weekends and holidays):
The supervising dental/dental hygiene faculty must immediately call the Clinical Laboratories in Ruby (598-4232).  Inform the lab that an after hours bloodborne exposure has occurred in the School of Dentistry, and give them the patient’s name, hospital number(if known), and the supervising School of Dentistry faculty to notify with the blood test result.

Obtain an “After Hours Exposure Packet” from Oral Diagnosis or Pediatric Dentistry, have the patient sign the enclosed patient consent forms for testing, and take him/her to the fourth floor POC Lab(Mon. – Thurs., 7:30am – 7:00pm/6:00pm Friday), or to the Clinical Labs on the Third Floor of Ruby.  If the patient does not have a hospital number, take him/her to register at the Admissions Desk, first floor of Ruby, before going to either lab.

The lab will call the supervising SOD faculty with the patient’s lab results.  If the patient’s HIV result is positive, the employee/student must take the signed employee/student consent forms and immediately report to the Emergency Department of Ruby Hospital.  If the HIV result is negative, the employee/student must report to Employee Health, 2nd  Floor of Ruby the next morning or business day.

* WVU Employee Health will direct all follow-up on exposure incidents which occur in the School of Dentistry.  All laboratory testing expenses incurred for the employee or student and the source person will be paid by WVU.  Immediately after blood is drawn by the lab, the employee or student must complete an Incident Report obtained at the office of Donna Haid, Director of Clinical Education and Patient Care.