Infection Control and Safety Practices
The Infection Control and Safety Practices domain tests whether you can trace how pathogens move through a treatment room and match every item to the correct level of decontamination. Expect questions on hand hygiene, disinfectant contact time, single-use versus reusable implements, blood exposure, and employer duties under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens standard.
Three levels, three purposes
- Sanitation lowers microbial counts on surfaces, floors and linens using detergent and friction; it does not kill everything.
- Disinfection destroys most pathogens except bacterial spores. Use an EPA-registered, hospital-grade tuberculocidal disinfectant at label dilution and soak for the full label contact time.
- Sterilization destroys all microbial life including spores (autoclave or chemical sterilant) and is required for anything that penetrates skin or contacts blood.
Daily rules that get tested
- Wash hands with soap and warm water before and after every client and after glove removal; sanitizer is not a substitute when hands are visibly soiled.
- Clean implements of debris, dry them, then immerse completely in disinfectant; store dry in a covered container, never left sitting in the jar.
- Porous items - files, buffers, foam wedges, wooden sticks, pumice - cannot be disinfected; use once and discard or give to the client.
- Contaminated sharps such as extraction lancets go into a rigid sharps container.
- Standard Precautions: treat all blood and body fluids as infectious and glove for any contact.
Worked example
An extraction produces a bead of blood. Reasoning: this is a bloodborne-pathogen exposure. Stop the service, keep gloves on, discard contaminated single-use items into a lined biohazard bag, clean and then disinfect reusable implements for the full contact time, disinfect the work surface, wash hands, and document the incident. You do not simply wipe the area and continue.
Traps that cost marks
- Stems that swap sanitize and disinfect.
- A quick dip substituted for full contact time.
- Double-dipping a spatula or brush into product.
- Assuming a UV towel cabinet sterilizes; it is storage only.