Infection control and clinical safety requirements
What the domain tests
This domain tests infection prevention and clinical safety duties in Montana dental settings. The Board expects compliance with accepted infection-control standards, generally the CDC dental infection-control recommendations, plus OSHA bloodborne-pathogen and hazard-communication rules. The legal issue is not whether a practice “looks clean”; it is whether required processes are followed and documented.
Core rules
- Use standard precautions for every patient: hand hygiene, gloves, masks, eye protection, and gowns when splash or spatter is likely.
- Clean and sterilize instruments between patients; package and date sterilized items; monitor sterilizers, including spore testing, and keep logs.
- Disinfect clinical surfaces; separate clean and contaminated areas; handle sharps in puncture-resistant containers.
- Manage waterlines and suction per accepted guidance; follow manufacturer instructions for disinfectants and sterilizers.
- Radiograph safely: minimize exposure, use proper technique and shielding as indicated, and maintain equipment.
- Document exposure incidents and follow post-exposure evaluation.
Worked example
A bur is dropped on the floor during a restoration. It is not picked up and reused after a quick alcohol wipe. It is contaminated and must be discarded or processed through the validated cleaning and sterilization cycle. The assistant documents the incident if exposure occurred.
Traps
Assuming “cold sterile” chemicals replace sterilization where heat is required; skipping spore testing because the autoclave “seems fine”; wearing the same gloves to answer the phone and treat the next patient.