Abstract
BackgroundAccidental exposure to blood and body fluids is a public health concern, especially among health workers and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood-borne viruses including HIV, hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency and the post exposure management of accidental exposures to blood and body fluid among health workers in the Yaoundé University Teaching Hospital.MethodsIt was a cross-sectional hospital-based study conducted from the 1st to the 30th of September 2013. Self-administered questionnaires to health workers were used to collect data on self-reported accidents, circumstances and post-exposure management. Their knowledge on accidental exposure to blood was also assessed. Data were entered and analyzed using Epi Info software version 3.5.4. Descriptive analysis was performed to measure the importance of AEB and to evaluate the risk of contamination.ResultsOne hundred and fifty health workers were interviewed among which 36.7 % reported having been exposed to blood and body fluid at least once in the preceding 3 months. Splash was the most reported injury (in 60.3 % of cases), followed by needle stick (28.7 %) and cuts (10.9 %). Moreover, 43.6 % of victims were not vaccinated against HBV, 7.3 % were not wearing gloves during the accident and 41 % of splash occurs on injured skin. The majority of victims belong to the surgical Department [20 %, p = 0.2310]. None of these injuries had been reported in the registry of accidental exposure to blood.ConclusionsThere is a high rate of accidental exposure to blood and body fluid in the daily hospital routine. Preventives measures, including wearing of protective equipment’s during care and vaccination against HBV are not systematically done among health workers. Health institution should develop and provide standard operating procedures targeting surveillance of occupational risks, staff training, and supervision.
Highlights
Accidental exposure to blood and body fluids is a public health concern, especially among health workers and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood-borne viruses including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus
Study population The study population consisted of health-care workers who came into contact with patients, or were potentially exposed to body fluids from patients during their jobs
Our sample was representative of all the Health care workers (HCWs) of the Yaoundé University Teaching Hospital (YUTH), in terms of occupational categories and services as Table 1 shows
Summary
Accidental exposure to blood and body fluids is a public health concern, especially among health workers and constitutes a risk of transmission of blood-borne viruses including HIV, hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus. Accidental exposure to blood (AEB) is the unintended contact with blood and or body fluids mixed with blood, during a medical intervention. It carries the risk of infection by numerous blood-borne viruses [1, 2]. Health-care workers in Africa suffer two to four needle-stick injuries per year on average [9]. A study conducted in West Africa estimated the incidence of AEB at 1.8/surgeon/year, 0.6/ nurse/year and 0.3/physician/year [10]. In Cameroon, a study conducted in 1997 shows that 60.7 % of HCWs experienced at least one episode of AEB for a one year period [11]
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