Preventing Blood Exposure in the Home Care Work Environment

The purpose of this multi-faceted research project is to further understand the risk of blood exposure among workers employed in the home care work environment and to develop, implement and evaluate the effectiveness of intervention strategies designed for the primary prevention of blood exposure. The project includes focus groups and surveys conducted among Registered Nurses (RNs) and Personal Care Assistants (PCAs) working in the home environment; as well as a survey of Directors of Home Care Agencies in the States of Maryland and Illinois. Focus group and survey data, as well as ongoing discussions with workers, union, and home care agency representatives, informed the development of the intervention and the measurement of its impact. The intervention includes worker training, strategies to increase the availability and use of gloves and needle disposal systems and Hepatitis B vaccine, and efforts to enhance the quality and usefulness of the care plan. In addition, a photo documentary of “a day in the life of a home care worker” is included as an innovative and an essential element of the educational intervention. This presentation will include an overview of the overall project with an emphasis on the process and outcome of intervention development and implementation and include the viewing of a segment of the photo documentary.