Final answer:
Standard Precautions require barriers when anticipated with blood, nonintact skin, mucous membranes, not typically sweat. Health-care workers must use various methods to prevent infection, including personal protective equipment and rigorous disinfection practices, especially when dealing with potential HBV transmission.
Step-by-step explanation:
Standard Precautions involve the use of barriers whenever contact is anticipated with body fluids or materials that may spread infection. Specifically, precautions are necessary when dealing with blood or wound drainage, nonintact skin, and mucous membranes. However, precautions are not typically required for sweat unless it is visibly contaminated with blood, as sweat alone does not pose a significant risk of infection.
Health-care workers must employ these precautions to prevent infection from various pathogens, including the Hepatitis B virus (HBV), and they can include wearing gloves, face protection, using disposable syringes, washing exposed skin, and applying post-exposure treatment if necessary. Surfaces potentially contaminated with infectious agents should be disinfected, often using a 10% bleach solution as recommended by the CDC. Infection control practices are critical, particularly in healthcare settings, to minimize the risk of spreading infections.