There are many reasons why this issue is important for the emergency physician (EP). EPs would be expected
to have exposure patterns similar to those of other hospital workers. Those emergency medicine (EM) residents
training on other hospital services should have exposure patterns similar to those of health care workers
on other services. EPs commonly provide care for hospital employees who have been occupationally exposed
to biohazards; data for these injuries may be valuable for prevention measures related to such exposures. Data
from these analyses and similar studies also may be used to guide scheduling of ED personnel to decrease the risk
of hazardous exposures.