Hepatitis B Protection in the Workplace Hepatitis B is a virus transmitted by blood and body fluid contact between people. Blood containing hepatitis B can remain on inanimate objects for long periods of time and still be infectious. The hepatitis B virus is more transmissible than HIV and actually kills more people than AIDS. Hepatitis B is sometimes treatable with expensive medication but fortunately the vaccination for Hepatitis B will protect people against Hepatitis B.
People who are recommended to receive Hepatitis B vaccine: Anyone who may be exposed to bodily fluids, blood, or sharp objects exposed to blood or body fluids.
- Health Care workers and those working with sharps
- Travellers going to high-risk countries (usually this is for greater than 3 months)
- Frequent travellers who travel a lot especially without warning or advanced notice
- People receiving regular blood products or treatments (hemophilia, dialysis or frequent transfusion)
- Athletes: Several cases of transmission between participants have occurred in contact sports such as boxing, in the sharing of hot tubs with those with open cuts, and even in skiing where braches hitting a cross-country skier drew blood and transferred this to the next person brushing the tree! We suggest that athletes strongly consider their personal risk for this disease.
- Sex trade workers
- Others - A small percentage of hepatitis B infections cannot be traced to the above methods of transmission. This may be due to the hardiness of the virus being able to stay on inanimate objects. It has been suggested therefore to have universal immunization to prevent these silent infections. This has been suggested that children to be given hepatitis B immunization before they are sexually active to protect them beforehand.

In Manitoba the hepatitis B vaccine has been given free to 4th Grade children for several years. Unfortunately, many adults who are high risk have not received protection from that program and remain at risk. Since this is not a vaccine that is free or commonly discussed by Family physicians, we recommend that it be considered. Many of those at risk are seen by travel clinics, but there are also a significant amount of people in high-risk occupation jobs who would benefit from hepatitis B coverage for their protection in the workplace.

The Hepatitis B vaccine is safe, and despite loud accusations from alternative medical groups has not been associated with multiple scleroses, diabetes, or autism, among other diseases. The foundations supporting patient advocacy and support for the above mentioned conditions clearly support continued immunization with hepatitis B and this is confirmed in established medical literature.

The hepatitis B vaccine needs to be given in 3 doses at zero, one and 6 months. After the second dose people are protected for one year and after a third, lifetime protection is given. (For health care workers this needs to be confirmed by blood testing). There also exists an accelerated dosing schedule of 4 doses at 0, 7, 21 days (giving good protection) and the 4th at 12 months.