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Subscriber:
Our Company has a laboratory which has a particular full time employee who has notified us that they have Hep C.
Certain activities (work related) within the Lab require the use of among other things, pipettes etc which are often put in the mouth.
Can you advise us on the risk management strategies that might be effective in safeguarding other staff who work in the lab from time to time.
I am also know that we have to be mindful of possible infringements of " anti discrimination" legislation
Can you help with some advise on how to effectively manage this situation and what the legislative guidelines and restrictions might be.
Answer:
Reference material includes:
- National Code of Practice for Health Care Workers and Other People at Risk of the Transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus and hepatitis in the Workplace [NOHSC:2010(1993)]. Usually this is downloadable from the NOHSC website at: www.nohsc.gov.au
- National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) "Infection control in health care settings: Guidelines for the prevention of transmission of infection diseases" 1996. Ordinarily the Guidelines can be purchased from the Australian Government Bookshop (www.bookshop.gov.au)
Comcare's Approved Code of Practice incorporates the National Code of Practice for Health Care Workers and other People at risk of Transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and in the Workplace (NOHSC:2010 (1993). The National Code of Practice is now nine years old has been withdrawn by the National Occupational Health and Safety Commission for review.
Given the Commonwealth code of practice is currently not available and there is no equivalent code in operation in Victoria, we refer you to guidelines in another state.
Western Australia has a code of practice for the management of HIV AIDS and hepatitis at workplaces. This can be found at www.safetyline.wa.gov.au and you should consider this, including the risk management guidelines. Consider in conjunction with the advice of a medical doctor that you should consult about the issue. You should apply these risk management guidelines (available from above web site) to the particular workplace environment and work tasks that the employee is undertaking, and any exposure of other employees. For example, you need to scope out in more detail what are the "certain activities" and "other things" (as per your question) and why items are put in the mouth, how frequently there is exposure with potential risk. Also consider amongst other matters whether any work practices which involve unnecessary exposure to bodily fluids can be eliminated. Also consider based on the risk assessment and medical advice whether there is any issue of exposure to persons other than employees (eg customers) and whether there is any issue of compliance with Victorian food safety laws.
Discrimination
Under the Victorian Equal Opportunity Act and the federal Disability Discrimination Act 1993, employers must not discriminate against an employee on the grounds of a past, present, imputed or future impairment. The discrimination can be direct or indirect.
Direct discrimination involves treatment that favours one person over another person in the same or similar circumstances. An example would be terminating the employment of someone because they have hepatitis C or requiring patients who have hepatitis C to wear identifying wrist bands.
Indirect discrimination can occur if there are rules or requirements which apply to everyone, but which have the effect of disadvantaging one group and are not reasonable in the circumstances.
Employer responsibilities
With regard to hepatitis C in the workplace, general guidelines are:
- Employees with hepatitis C should be treated in the same manner as any employee with a non-work related illness (eg., cancer, heart disease).
- All employment decisions should be based exclusively on criteria relating to merit and fitness and have no reference to hepatitis C,
- Any information pertaining to an individual's hepatitis C status should be kept confidential.
- Employers who become aware of a prospective or existing employee with hepatitis C are obliged to make any reasonable adjustment required to ensure the employee can
continue to carry out the essential requirements of the job, so long as the adjustment does not cause unjustifiable hardship in terms of cost, dislocation to work practices etc.
- All normal sick leave and other leave entitlements should be no different for hepatitis C illnesses than for other illnesses.
- Where practicable, an employee with hepatitis C should not be required to work where there is risk of transmission of other diseases which may increase or aggravate that employee's ill-health.
Employee responsibilities
Unless the work poses a danger to employees or the public, there should be no denial of services to existing or potential clients on the grounds that those clients have or are thought to have hepatitis C.
Confidentiality and the requirement to obtain consent to waive that confidentiality should be respected.
Some technical references
- Gerberding, J.L., 'Management of Occupational Exposures to Blood-borne Viruses'. New England Medical Journal Feb. 16 1995, Volume 332 No. 7, pages 444-451
- Lemon, S., Brown, E., 1995, 'Hepatitis C Virus' in Principles and Practice of Infectious Disease. Editors. Mandell, G.M., Bennett, J.E., Dolin, R. 4th edition, Publishers Churchill Livingstone. Pgs 1474-1486
The issue you have raised in general terms can be complex and it is suggested that after you have conducted the workplace risk assessment and consulted a doctor (whose advice you should seek in writing), we recommend you contact us for legal advice as to how to further progress this issue.
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