Biological Agents in Health and Social Care 

Exposure to biological agents in the health and social care sector may be:

• intentional, as a result of working with the biological agent itself, such as in a microbiology laboratory; or
• unintentional, such as in patient care activities, where the exposure may arise as a result of the type of work being carried out.

Health and social care workers may come into contact with a number of sources of infection through their contact with biological agents via direct contact with service users or with contaminated materials, including waste, laundry, contaminated surfaces and so on. In the health and social care sector, common biological agents include (but are not limited to) norovirus, influenza A virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Hepatitis B virus.

The Law

The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Biological Agents) Regulations 2013 and 2020 ( S.I. No. 572 of 2013 as amended by S.I. No.539 of 2020) and the related Code of Practice set down the minimum requirements for the protection of workers from the health risks associated with biological agents in the workplace. The Health and Safety Authority is the enforcing agency with regard to these Regulations. The Health and Safety Authority does not deal with clinical risk issues with regard to infection control in healthcare, as this is more appropriately dealt with elsewhere.

The Biological Agents Regulations outline the minimum requirements for the protection of workers from the health risks associated with biological agents in the workplace.
The employer must:

• Identify the biological agent to which workers are, or may be exposed to from any work activity.
• Carry out a risk assessment.
• Implement the appropriate measures to protect employees’ health and safety and to prevent exposure to biological agents, where the risk assessment reveals a risk to employees’ health and safety.
• Comply with provisions of the Biological Agents Code of Practice referencing the list of biological agents, their classification, containment levels and measures provided for.
• Consult with, inform and train their employees.
• Notify the Health and Safety Authority as per Part 4 of the Regulations.

Useful Websites

• Health Protection Surveillance Centre
• Department of Health