Infection Control, Public Health Reporting, and Mandatory Reporting Obligations
Domain 7: Infection Control, Public Health Reporting, and Mandatory Reporting Obligations
This domain tests the chiropractor's public-health duties: preventing transmission in the office, reporting specified conditions, and reporting abuse or impairment as required by law.
Core rules
- Infection control follows standard precautions, hand hygiene, cleaning and disinfection of tables and equipment, safe handling of sharps, and bloodborne-pathogen exposure control. Federal OSHA bloodborne-pathogen requirements and CDC guidance apply alongside Board rules.
- Reportable communicable diseases must be reported to the Mississippi State Department of Health as required by the current MSDH list and deadlines. The chiropractor should not wait for a confirmatory diagnosis if reporting is legally required.
- Mandatory reporting of child abuse or neglect is required for suspected cases. Elder abuse and vulnerable-adult reporting may also apply under Mississippi law.
- Reporting to the Board is separate from public-health reporting. A licensee may have duties to report impaired colleagues or certain misconduct under Board rules.
Worked example
A patient discloses that a child in the home is being struck and shows suspicious bruising. The chiropractor treats the patient but must separately report the suspected child abuse to the required authority. HIPAA permits that report because it is a legal obligation. The chiropractor does not investigate or confront the family.
Traps
Do not report only to the Board when MSDH reporting is required. Do not assume confidentiality blocks a mandatory abuse report. Do not rely on disinfection alone when hand hygiene and exposure control are also required.