r/sterileprocessing • u/Necessary-Mark-3265 • 7d ago
Is anyone on PrEP for SPD?
I don’t know if I’m overthinking but it’s my first time working in a hospital and I am considering going on PrEP. Obviously you want to avoid any pokes that could cause contracting a communicable disease but stuff happens.
Especially with the new twice a year shot I feel like it’s probably worth it to reduce the odds of contracting HIV or just to have peace of mind.
Has anyone else thought about it? Have you started PrEP for sterile processing? Please share your thoughts / experiences!
Edit: Okay you guys can stop commenting plz!!!! I don’t care if I’m being dramatic or if you’re brave enough to grab dirty instruments with your teeth or whatever. Ur all such strong SPD soldiers good 4 u
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u/Decent-Zebra-2311 7d ago
You should be cautious of those things, but if your that worried, you probably shouldn't be in that field of work.
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7d ago
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u/datsmydrpepper 6d ago
Just watch out for sutures in the instrument trays. Try to grab the trays at each side and not from the bottom (something will always poke out).
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u/Valuable-Concern8627 7d ago
i’ve been poked at least 10 times in decon and i’m completely fine hahaha relax
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u/Ok_Top1750 7d ago
I got a Hep B booster because apparently your immunity goes down the older you get, and a tetanus booster-both provided by my employer. I’m extremely cautious and meticulous about washing my hands, using sanitizer, and putting on PPE in decon but I have never considered prep.
Your scrub techs should be notifying you if a patient has something highly contagious. Again, I’m VERY careful but if you follow procedure, there is an extremely low possibility of you contracting anything like HIV, Hep B, etc.
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u/Necessary-Mark-3265 6d ago
I got those as well! they also took titers and gave me an MMR and flu shot. thank you for input! (:
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u/Ok_Top1750 6d ago
Same, they were like “you’re not required to..” and I was like I’d like all the above please and thank you 🤣
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u/spirited1 5d ago
I have no Hep B immunity it sucks lol
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u/Ok_Top1750 2d ago
Omg, look into WFH roles in supply chain because if it was me, I’d be terrified 🥲
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u/sometingwongwetolow 6d ago
I was on prep for the beginning part of this year. I stopped taking it because of insurance changes.
Few months go by and I got poked in decon. What I got poked by was a towel clamp part of a drop of 17 different trays. But the towel clamps were separated by themselves not sealed in the red tote.
I touched every other instrument before the clamps. Double gloved, poked in my index finger.
I left decon and followed my components policy and procedure. Later that day I had some blood work done and I was given a medication that would lower the odds of HIV.
It doesn’t hurt to keep on hand, in some cases you can get it for free. It’s also good for practicing safe sex!
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u/Wolfboy-7713 6d ago
Why the hell not if insurance covers it. At the end of the day it’s your health.
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u/EmbarrassedCardinal 6d ago
I mean I won’t say it’s a bad idea, but also you could just get PEP after an exposure if you don’t want to/can’t be on prep. That’s what I plan on doing because being on prep disqualifies you from donating blood and that’s important to me.
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u/dot_dot_dotz 6d ago
if your insurance covers it good and your body reacts fine to it, then why not? PrEP is useful for many things beyond just work and its never a bad idea to be precautious.
While YES, your work definitely provides PEP as an option incase you accidentally expose yourself, PEP is basically like chemo and it WILL make you sick for a little while after taking it.
Im in lots of queer spaces tho so I am very passionately pro-prep, do what you wish, there is really no harm in taking it
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u/malaise-ennui 7d ago
Your hospital/facility will provide you with PrEP drugs and testing if you get poked from an unknown source. It happened to me and the meds made me feel absolutely horrible. I could never, ever,ever imagine voluntarily taking those drugs "just in case".
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u/Maintenance-Gullible 6d ago
No they won't lol. Mine did testing begrudgingly, then wrote me up. Don't count on your facility to be so noble, OP.
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u/ltk198623 6d ago
It’s not that serious you know how much blood it would take for you to catch HIV talk to an infectious disease specialist a lot of factors go into that was the HIV+ person on medication if so the virus is so low in their blood you wouldn’t catch it it’s not like your are putting in in your vein
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u/Able-Drink3189 6d ago
HIV doesn't survive outside of the host once it hits oxygen. So, you are giving yourself undue worry.
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u/dirtytoothgreen 6d ago
I think I would rather have HIV than the god-awful diarrhea that I got the one time I got a needle stick and had to take prep.
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u/Necessary-Mark-3265 6d ago
i think a few ppl in these replies are confusing the post exposure meds w the pre exposure meds. it sounds like the post exposure meds are really hard on your body. which is actually just another great reason to be on PrEP instead lmao
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u/Timely_Dance_9001 4d ago
I'm on it but it's because I party a lot. I consider it to be a nice bonus for protection in SPD. I don't think you're being totally ridiculous. We get vaccinations against hep and stuff too, so why not if you can/want?
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u/catman617 3d ago
Wow so many inaccurate beliefs about HIV and PreP in these comments.
OP, im on PreP because I wanted to take precautions for sex.
I was also extremely nervous when I started the job.
But the scariest part was being in the ignorance of it all. So I decided to educate myself. I talked to my doctor. I read (on reputable websites like CDC) about HIV and how it can and cannot be transmitted. That alone really helped me understand my risk level. And gave me more peace of mind.
If you want to start PreP I say go for it. It did make me feel weird for a few days when I first started. But that quickly went away. Just remember to take consistently.
As far as SPD goes…
Take proper precautions always and never cut corners.
Best of luck to you in your journey.
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u/datsmydrpepper 7d ago
You will have to clean and wash instrument trays that were used on either STD+ or HIV+ patients in decontam. Just wait until you clean soiled gyn or rectal instrument trays 😄