PREVENTION OF HIV TRANSMISSION IN THE WORKPLACE: CATEGORIZATION OF JOBS AND TASKS BY RISK OF HIV INFECTION

: The risk to workers of exposure to HIV or other blood-borne infectious diseases on the job is dependent upon the likelihood of exposure to blood, body fluids, or tissues while performing the tasks required by the job. Three categories of workplace-associated risk of HIV exposure have been defined. These categories can be summarized as follows. Category I--Regular or Frequent Exposure Potential. Applies primarily to health-care workers, including emergency medical workers. These workers are at greatest risk of occupationally acquired HIV disease. Category II--Intermittent Exposure Potential. Applies to persons such as police officers, fire fighters, and correctional facility personnel. Category III--Rare or No Exposure Potential. Applies to most jobs in the service and manufacturing industries, including office personnel. These workers are at no greater risk than the general public for exposure to HIV. As there is definite risk to Category I and II workers of becoming infected with HIV while performing duties required by their jobs (their risk of acquiring HBV is much greater), it is important for employers in these workplaces to establish procedures to prevent the exposures that may lead to infections. The first step in this process is to analyze carefully tasks performed within the workplace to identify Category I and II tasks, as described in the DOL/DHHS Joint Advisory Notice. Once this has been done, the DOL/DHHS document and pertinent CDC recommendations should be used to develop specific procedures for those workers at risk.