Standardizing the Care of Occupational Blood-Borne Pathogen Exposures to Reduce Unnecessary Use of the Emergency Department

ProblemCare of health care workers with a blood-borne pathogen (BBP) exposure who seek treatment in emergency departments needs to be standardized. A standardized system may lead to better care for exposed individuals.MethodsAn interprofessional process was developed to standardize care of occupational BBP exposures in nonemployees. A health planning program design was conducted to compare outcomes before and after the standardized process was enacted.ResultsStandardizing treatment of occupational exposures provided more efficient care for exposed nonemployee workers and allowed an improved use of ED resources.Implications for PracticePrograms developed to improve utilization of the emergency department have a greater chance of success when developed using an interprofessional, collaborative approach.