Coaches should use these precautions when dealing with players that have sustained an injury where  blood or other body fluids are present..

• Always wear latex gloves when providing first-aid to a player.
  
• Wash areas which have been contaminated with blood or body fluids with a disinfectant mixture of 1 part bleach and 10 parts water. (This solution is not for cleaning the patient it is for surfaces such as the bench area)
  
• Always use a protective mask when situations demand using mouth to mouth resuscitation.
  
• Always remember to wash your hands with a disinfectant soap after removing latex gloves.
  
• Never assume any injured party is HIV negative....
  
• When treating injuries where blood or bodily fluids are present always wear latex gloves…
  

Injuries on and off the ice occasionally involve blood or other body fluid exposure. Medical history and outward appearances can not identify people infected with the HIV. Control standards called universal or standard precautions should be used in avoiding disease transmission. Latex gloves should be worn while caring for any open wound, nose bleed or other injury where there is a loss of body fluid. Razors, tweezers and nail files should never be shared. If you should sustain contact with blood or body fluid, promptly wash exposed area with disinfectant soap and water. Since unbroken skin is the first line of defense against infection, observe the site for any breaks in the skin. If skin is broken, seek medical advice promptly.
Remember an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Facts Ice Hockey
players, coaches
and parents should know about AIDS.

One quarter of all new HIV infections in the United States today are estimated to occur in young Americans between the ages of 13 - 20 according to Patricia Fleming of the Office of National AIDS Policy for the White House. That means two Americans under the age of 20 become infected with HIV every hour of every day. The rate of  infection among young people is growing as the epidemic spreads with estimates of over one million Americans infected with the HIV.                                                                                                                                                                                         
Education on HIV / AIDS prevention and responsible decision-making  skills should begin at an early age and be continually reinforced both in and beyond the classroom. Educational programs and preventive messages need to be developed and delivered by parents, coaches, religious leaders, youth leaders, professional health care providers, peers and role models.
HIV can be transmitted by sexual contact, by exposure to blood or other body fluid through sharing needles and syringes from drug use, tattooing or piercing and by pregnancy from mother to the unborn baby.  Since March 1985, the American Red Cross tests all donated units of blood for HIV and the risk of receiving a contaminated blood transfusion is very low.
HIV is not about who you are, but about what you do.
AIDS is a disease that results from certain actions and it is preventable.
Education and responsible decision making are our best defense...