Units should develop a clearly-defined policy for the management of sharps and
sharps-related injuries, including the reporting of blood and body fluid exposures.
This should be in compliance with federal, state and local guidelines.
• Units should consistently maintain a log of sedation medications wasted between
patients that can be used to reconcile used and wasted vials at the end of the day.
• If tubes of lubricant are used for more than one exam, the unit should observe
appropriate infection control habits and discard any tube that has potentially been
contaminated.
• Although the multisociety guideline recommends using sterile water in the
irrigation bottle, it is acceptable to use tap water as this has been shown to be
safeinformed co.29 The rates of bacterial cultures are no different with the use of
tap water versus sterile water and neither has been associated with clinical
infections.30, 31
• Units should follow federal and state requirements for the protection of health care
personnel from exposure to blood-borne pathogens.