Nurses are exposed to numerous infectious diseases in the healthcare setting. HIV, hepatitis, influenza, TB, MRSA, MERS and Ebola are just some of contagious agents from which healthcare workers must be protected. New pathogens emerge on a regular basis.
Proper infection control practices protects both patients and healthcare workers. Just ask Bellevue Hospital NYSNA RNs. Working closely with the NYC Mayor’s office, the CDC, and the state and city Departments of Health, Bellevue Hospital RNs and other caregivers took the lead on preparing for our city’s first Ebola case. Dr. Craig Spencer was rushed there after he started running a fever. Thanks to their preparation and care, Spencer, a humanitarian who contracted the disease while caring for patients in West Africa, is now Ebola-free — and unlike other hospitals, no Bellevue caregivers were infected with the disease.
General Infectious Disease Information
- OSHA Safety and Health Topics: Infectious Diseases
- Centers for Disease Control/National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health: Workplace Safety and Health Topics - Healthcare Workers
Tuberculosis
- NYSNA Fact Sheet: Tuberculosis Guide (NEW, April 2024!)
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration: Tuberculosis Control and Prevention
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Tuberculosis Treatment Guidelines
Monkeypox
- MPox Alert: New Clade I Outbreak Raises Concerns (August 2024)
- Practice Alert: Monkeypox, July 12, 2022
COVID-19
Zika Virus
- NYSNA Fact Sheet: About Zika and What You Can Do to Help
- Zika Virus: Symptoms, Transmission and Occupational Exposure
- NYSNA expanded information update: ZIKA
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Zika Virus
- World Health Organization: Zika
- NYS Department of Health
Legionella
- NYSNA: Understanding Legionnaires' Disease
- Bellevue Hospital Center: Legionella Fact Sheet
- NYCOSH: Understand Legionnaires' Disease: A Fact Sheet for Workers and Unions
- New York State Department of Health: Legionnaires' Disease and Legionella
Bloodborne Pathogens
- OSHA: Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention
- National Council for Occupational Safety and Health: Using OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard to Protect Your Health on the Job
Ebola
- OSHA: Ebola
- Centers for Disease Control (CDC): Ebola Information for U.S. Healthcare Workers and Settings
- NYSNA: Healthcare Worker Safety Guidelines for Suspect Ebola Patients
- NYSNA Ebola information and action page
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS)
- Centers for Disease Control Health Advisory: Updated Information and Guidelines for Evaluation of Patients for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) Infection
- NYSNA Practice Alert: What Nurses Need to Know about MERS-COV
Lassa Fever
- Centers for Disease Control: Lassa Fever
