EMPLOYEE HEALTH CARE
Employees

HEC will not dismiss, refuse to hire, refuse to advance in employment, or otherwise discriminate against persons with HIV infection, believed to have HIV infection, or persons believed to be at risk of HIV infection.
HEC will not require that employee or prospective employees disclose their HIV status.
HEC will not require that employees or prospective employees undergo HIV testing as a condition of application or employment.
Information voluntarily provided by an HEC employee of their HIV status shall be kept confidential and contained in a separate medical file.
If requested to do so, HEC will make every effort to accommodate an employee diagnosed with HIV, AIDS, or any other infectious disease.

A. Pre-Employment Requirements
All Hillcrest Educational Centers employees must have a physical examination and essential functions testing prior to starting employment. This examination, which includes tuberculosis screening and Hepatitis B vaccination if wanted, is provided, at no cost to the employee.

B. Tuberculosis Screening
Tuberculosis screening is conducted on all staff at time of employment. If a staff is unable to receive a tuberculosis skin test due to previous exposure or other reasons Occupational Health arranges follow-up testing deemed appropriate, this may include a chest x-ray or referral to a Tuberculosis Clinic. Compliance with these recommendations may be a condition of continued employment with Hillcrest Educational Centers.

C. Employee Injury Procedure – Human Bite Policy
While doing everything possible to prevent human bites, Hillcrest Educational Centers recognizes that, given the behavioral profiles of the students served by Hillcrest, human bites may occur. Hillcrest’s procedure for instances of skin-breaking bites to a staff from a student are as follows:
While other staff notify the Supervisor that a staff has been injured, and as soon as possible after receiving bite, cleanse the area with soap and water for 8-10 minutes and cover with a dry sterile dressing.
Complete an Accident Reporting & Treatment (ART) form, and notify the Administrative Injury Coordinator as soon as possible. Refer staff to Occupational Health or the Emergency Department for treatment.
Nursing will inform Occupational Health or the ER of the Hepatitis B and HIV status of the “biter”, if known.
Treatment at the hospital may include Tetanus booster, Hepatitis and HIV testing as well as antibiotics. These will be available at no cost to the employee.
The Administrative Injury Coordinator will follow up with the employee after the assessment to coordinate care and facilitate the employee’s return to work.
The nursing department will contact the parent/guardian and/or custodial agency of the “biter” in order to attempt to obtain consent for HIV testing of the student if this consent is not already in place. HEC will follow the recommendations of the parent/guardian/custodial agency of the “biter” regarding testing. Consent forms that require parent/guardian/custodial agency signature will be submitted to the hospital/ laboratory at the time of the blood test. The physician must also sign these forms. The Nursing Department will make the parent/guardian/custodial agency aware that the test results will be shared with the injured staff and documentation of the results will be kept in a confidential sealed envelope in the student’s chart. Documentation regarding the attempt to obtain consent will be made on the employee’s Staff Injury Form.
The exposed individual will be informed of the student’s HIV status by the Infection Control Nurse and /or Occupational Health, when the results become available.