Employees of Belton ISD routinely face situations that could lead to exposure to bloodborne pathogens or other potentially infectious materials. In Lesson 4 ,you read about three possible scenarios involving exposure to bloodborne pathogens in school settings.

The most efficient mode of transmission is direct inoculation with infected blood. This happens when people get infected blood from a blood transfusion. Since 1972, all units of blood collected in the United States for transfusion are screened for Hepatitis. Since the blood supply is cautiously guarded, blood transfusion poses very little risk.

Other forms of direct inoculation are through needle sharing by IV drug users or needlestick injury by health care workers. Needle sharing and accidental needlestick injury would be rare in a school setting.

You are at the greatest risk from blood. Blood and blood-derived body fluids contain the highest quantities of virus and present the greatest risk for infection.

Other body fluids, such as saliva and semen contain a smaller concentration of the virus and pose some risk for infection.

Urine and feces contain only small quantities of virus unless blood is visible.

Key Terms	Movies
Direct Innoculation - To be injected directly into the body, commonly by needles and syringes
Needlestick Injury - To have a puncture wound from a needle or syringe
Blood-Derived Body Fluids - Liquids from the body which contain blood

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In this lesson you learned that:

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