7.05 Standard Precautions

Support

Accessory kits for Medela Symphony pumps can be purchased at a discounted rate at Harvard University Health Services Pharmacy at 75 Mount Auburn Street. Please call first to see if they are in stock prior to making the trip.

Nursing and working: guidelines and best practices

In case anyone forgets or breaks an accessory kit piece needed for the pump:

BWH has a pump accessories vending machine. Take the J elevator to the 6th floor (NICU). The vending machine takes cash or CC.

Boston Children’s Hospital has a pump accessories vending machine. Take the Hunnewell or Fegan elevator to the 1st floor. Turn left upon exiting the elevator and then take another left. The vending machine takes cash or CC.

Contact Harvard Longwood Campus Work/Life Program Manager, with further questions: worklife.hlc@harvard.edu

Please visit the Harvard Longwood Campus Lactation Rooms site for more detailed information.

7.05 Standard Precautions

Students working in the laboratory, in clinical simulations (such as teaching sessions that involve practice on volunteers or fellow students), or with patients or human subjects research participants, should follow standard precautions at all times:

1. Always wash your hands or use a hand sanitizer before and after touching a patient, after using the restroom, and after touching a contaminated surface. Infections are caused by bacteria or viruses MOST COMMONLY SPREAD BY UNWASHED HANDS. 2. Consider all blood, all body fluids, and all mucous membranes or non-intact skin from ALL PATIENTS to be infectious. 3. Wear gloves when exposure to blood, body fluids, mucous membranes, or nonintact skin may occur. Change your gloves and wash your hands after each procedure and before contact with another patient. 4. Wear a mask and protective eyewear (or face shield) when blood or body fluids may splash into your face. 5. Wear a fluid resistant gown during activity that may generate splashes or sprays of blood, body fluids, secretions, or excretions. 6. DO NOT RECAP NEEDLES OR SHARPS after use. Place all disposable sharps into puncture-proof containers immediately after use. Locate the designated container before you begin the procedure. 7. Always use needle safety devices when available and activate the safety feature.

First – Attend to the injury

For example, if there is a wound from a sharp object, wash it with soap and water and apply direct pressure if it is bleeding. If clothing is contaminated from a chemical, biological, or radiation spill, remove it and wash the exposed area. Materials Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) are available when laboratory reagents and chemicals are used and may be a useful resource for immediate care. Be sure to inform your supervisor of the injury.

Second – Seek immediate medical attention at your clinical site

Your PCE or clinical supervisor has given you specific instructions for your site. If in doubt, you can also find the hospital-specific contact numbers for our 20 clinical sites below.