Health Care Workers affected by HIV
Can I work in the health service if I am HIV positive?
What are defined as Exposure Prone Procedures?
Do I have to disclose my HIV positive status if I am a healthcare worker?
This information is provided as guidance for any healthcare workers worried about HIV. It is not intended to replace professional medical or legal advice.
All doctors, nurses, midwives, dentists, medical students and any other health workers should be familiar with the Department of Health guidelines relating to HIV infected healthcare workers which can be accessed here
Q. Can I work in the health service if I am HIV positive?
A. Yes. There are many HIV positive healthcare workers who have successful careers in the health service. All medical professionals are required to use Universal Medical Precautions and infection control procedures at all times, no matter what their HIV status. These procedures protect both the worker and the patient from any risk of transmission of many diseases that are far more infectious than HIV.
An HIV diagnosis is not a barrier to working as a medical professional. However there are limitations in some fields of medicine. These limitations apply to healthcare workers involved in Exposure Prone Procedures.
Q. What are defined as Exposure Prone Procedures?
A. The Department of Health defines Exposure Prone Procedures as follows:
"Exposure Prone Procedures are those invasive procedures where there is a risk that injury to the worker may result in the exposure of the patient’s open tissues to the blood of the worker (bleed-back).
These include procedures where the worker’s gloved hands may be in contact with sharp instruments, needle tips or sharp tissues (e.g. spicules of bone or teeth) inside a patient’s open body cavity, wound or confined anatomical space where the hands or fingertips may not be completely visible at all times.
However, other situations, such as pre-hospital trauma care should be avoided by healthcare workers restricted from performing exposure prone procedures, as they could also result in the exposure of the patient’s open tissues to the blood of the worker".
They do not include:
- Taking blood
- Giving injections
- Setting up intravenous lines
- Routine vaginal and rectal examinations
- Giving minor stitches
- The incision of external abscesses
- Simple endoscopic procedures
The only staff in the health service that routinely perform Exposure Prone Procedures are:
- Anyone involved in surgery
- Dentists
- Midwives
If you are involved in Exposure Prone Procedures and you find out that you are HIV positive, it is essential that you seek confidential advice immediately. Your employer should give you the option to retrain and be redeployed in another discipline.
Q. Do I have to disclose my HIV positive status if I am a healthcare worker?
A. Unless you are performing Exposure Prone Procedures there is no legal obligation to disclose your HIV status. The advice given by the Department of Health is that you should discuss your HIV status with your Occupational Health Department.
If you do not wish to put this in writing on a medical questionnaire, you are entitled to tell Occupational Health verbally. Your confidentiality should be protected at all times, and most of the time there should be no need to involve your line manager.
Last updated April 2010