07-030/50 Handling of Bio-hazardous and Bio-solid Waste Material

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department

PURPOSE OF ORDER:    

The purpose of this unit order is to establish procedures for the proper handling,

cleaning and disposal of solid waste and bio-hazardous materials encountered at

North County Correctional Facility (NCCF).

SCOPE OF ORDER:         

This order applies to all personnel assigned to and/or working at NCCF.

ORDER:                               

For the purposes of this unit order, the following definitions apply:

Bio-hazardous material: Hazardous biological material that presents a risk or potential risk to the health of humans, animals, or the environment. The risk can be direct through infection or indirect through damage to the environment. Bio-hazardous materials include certain types of organisms and viruses infectious to humans, animals, or plants (e.g., parasites, viruses, bacteria, etc.). They also include biologically active agents (i.e., toxins and venoms) that may cause disease in other living organisms or significantly impact the environment. The most common bio-hazardous material that you may find in a custodial environment is infectious bodily fluids.

Bio-solid waste material: Any solid, semisolid, or liquid waste produced by the body that may be infectious and result in the spread of disease. Bio-solid waste materials include vomit and fecal matter.

BIO-HAZARDOUS CLEANING- PROCEDURES:

In the event of a bio-hazardous material spill, however small, the spill shall be cleaned by a trained person. This trained person may be an inmate worker, personnel, or any authorized cleaning company representative. Inmate workers and personnel shall be trained by the unit safety officer or designee who has been properly trained by the Department.

For a minor spill, the area shall be cleared of any personnel not involved in the cleaning or supervision of the incident. The handling person shall don appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) deemed necessary by the on-scene supervisor prior to the cleaning process. If there is debris of any kind (e.g., paper towels, rags, clothing, sheets, etc.), it shall be picked up and placed inside a bio-hazardous bag. Any area surrounding the bio-hazardous material shall be cleaned with a liberal mixture of “Turbo-Kill” and hot water. Once the spill is clean, use a clean bucket of the Turbo-Kill mixture and re-mop the affected area. Thoroughly clean the mop and bucket after dumping the water. The affected mop head and any debris shall be place inside the bio-hazardous bag.

The bio-hazardous bag shall then be delivered safely to the Bio-Hazardous Collection Container located in the NCCF Infirmary.

FACILITY PACKAGING:

Correctional Health Services (CHS) personnel shall be responsible for handling all bio-hazardous waste from the collection containers and preparing them for transportation out of the facility.

FACILITY PICK UP:

The bio-hazardous waste collection container shall be collected every Thursday.

TRANSPORTING:

All bio-hazardous waste shall be collected and transported by the contracted company (“Stericycle”).

BIO-SOLID CLEAN-UP PROCEDURES:

Any clothing item, linen, or bedding material that is possibly contaminated with a bio-solid material shall be treated as such by inmate workers and personnel. When staff or inmate workers are handling these materials, they shall wear gloves and wash their hands after completing the task. All contaminated items shall be placed in the designated red, water-soluble bags prior to being sent to the laundry. The bags shall be clearly marked, identifying the suspected bio-solid material and separated from the general laundry items. The disposition of the items shall be determined by laundry personnel (i.e., sanitize or destroy).

PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT:

Disposable gloves - Disposable medical gloves shall be provided and utilized when handling bio-hazardous waste. The gloves provide protection against direct skin contact with the bio-hazardous materials. The gloves may be discarded as normal refuse unless soiled by bio-hazardous waste material. The gloves shall not be washed and reused.

Disposable aprons - Disposable aprons are intended to keep outer garments from contamination. The aprons shall be made available to those who desire to utilize them. The aprons shall be discarded as normal refuse after use unless it has come into direct contact with bio-hazardous waste materials.

All contaminated PPE shall be handled in accordance with the packaging guidelines as set forth in the previous paragraph(s).

Should any of the handling and/or transporting equipment become contaminated, cleaning shall be accomplished in accordance with the cleaning section of this unit order.