Injury/Illness

Blood and body fluid exposures

What should you do if you are exposed to the blood or body fluid of a patient?

1.  Immediately following an exposure to blood

  • Wash needlesticks and cuts with soap and water
  • Flush splashes to the nose, mouth or skin with water
  • Irrigate eyes with clean water or saline

2.  Keep the source or patient available for HIV, Hepatitis B antigen and Hepatitis C ab testing.

3.  Contact Occupational Health Services at (314) 362-3528. After hours, please call (314) 871-2966 and listen carefully for instructions.

Non-human primate exposure

What should you do if I am if I sustain a bite, scratch or splash to the mucous membranes of the eye or mouth or non intact skin, from a nonhuman primate of the genus Macaque (examples: Rhesus, Pigtail, Cynomolgus) or from ANY piece of equipment that may have been exposed to their secretions or blood, such as a needle stick or scratch from a macaque cage?

First aid for injuries related to exposure to nonhuman primates or their tissues is always considered an emergency.  First aid should be performed before seeking medical care unless the injury is severe. DO NOT DELAY!

  1. Identify the primate/source.
  2. Inform your supervisor of the exposure.
  3. If your supervisor is unavailable, call the DCM office at 362-3700 and Occupational Health Services at (314) 362-3528 for instructions.
  4. If it is after hours or on the weekend, page DCM at 841-5302 and Occupational Health at 871-2966 (listen to the message for further instructions.)
  5. Identify the animal or equipment that caused your injury.

Other types of animal related injuries

It is important to report any animal’s bites, including rodent bites to WUSM Occupational Health Services. For non-emergent, routine treatment on regular workdays, Monday-Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., call (314) 362-3528 to report the incident; after hours or on weekends, call the Occupational Health Service at (314) 871-2966 to report the incident.

Other types of injury/Illness procedures

Worker’s Compensation Report.

Reporting and Filing a Claim

Employees must give prompt notice of an injury arising out of and in the course and scope of their employment duties to their supervisor, manager or department head. Employees and supervisors must submit the employee report of injury or illness form as soon as an employee gives notice of having been injured at work.  To access the form online, log into HRMS.  From the Main Menu, go to “Employee Self Service”.  In the drop down box choose “Report an Injury”