Incidence Of Needlestick Injuries Research Articles

Exploring Biomedical Waste Management Practices Among Healthcare Professionals: A Study From a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital in Eastern India.

The generation of biomedical waste (BMW) in hospitals presents a significant hazard to both healthcare workers (HCWs) and the environment. The management of BMW is a challenge regarding inappropriate behavior among HCWs, leading to improper segregation of the BMW, which deserves attention.The indiscriminate BMW management issue in India has attracted the attention of the highest judicial bodies. The rise in the incidence of needle stick injuries is a severe threat to waste handlers and is mainly due to improper segregation practices. This study aimed to identify the challenges in BMW management in the institute and develop a strategy to improve the knowledge and practices of healthcare professionals (HCPs) in BMW management. A process-based intervention was developed and implemented that involved facility inspection rounds, focused group discussions with HCWs, preparation of information, education, and communication (IEC) materials, signage, staff training, and improved infrastructure and supplies for waste collection. A questionnaire-based evaluation of the staff's knowledge of BMW management was conducted, and the impact of the intervention was assessed from the hospital infection control audit reports. Multiple reasons for poor compliance with BMW segregation practices were identified, and it improved from 57% to 91% with interventions. A significant difference was noted in the knowledge level of staff before and after the interventions.Post-intervention score was highest among the nurses (98.5%), followed by sanitation staff (92.7%), doctors (89.25%), and paramedics (81.7%). Incorrect segregation practices of BMW and incidents of occupational exposure to blood and body fluids are reduced with interventions in the study. Robust supply chain management with regular training of staff is vital to ensure compliance in BMW management.

IJCM_321A: Circumstances and Distribution of Needle Stick Injuries among Healthcare Workers in a Medical College of Kolkata

Background: Needle-stick injuries (NSI) are common among Health- Care workers (HCWs) during execution of their patient care services and have been recognized as an important source of exposure to blood-borne pathogens. Considerable number of NSIs are not reported which prevents injured HCWs from receiving post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) against HIV, Hepatitis B and C. Objective: To assess the circumstances and reporting of Needle -stick Injuries and its association with service related and demographic variables of healthcare workers in a tertiary level hospital of Eastern India. Methodology: Descriptive, cross-sectional, hospital-based study. The study was conducted among 108 healthcare workers from 20th July to 20th August. Data were collected on Socio-demographic, Service related and events of Needle Stick Injuries and their reporting by an interviewer administered schedule. Results: About 72% study participants suffered from needle stick injury in last one year, 53.85% of them had a single event of NSI and 64% of NSI victims reported the event. Gender, educational status, occupation, vaccination status against Hep B, shift of duty during last NSI, place of last NSI were significantly associated (p value). Conclusion: Incidents of needle stick injuries were more among doctors. Participants completely vaccinated with Hep B vaccine suffered lower number of NSI.

Incidence of Needle Stick Injuries and Behavior After Injuries Among Nurses in Sulaimani Hospitals

Background: Needle-stick injuries cause occupational health and safety challenges for healthcare workers on a global scale. Needle-stick injuries can potentially expose individuals to dangerous blood-borne pathogens. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of needle stick injuries and their main causes, as well as the nurse’s behavior after being injured by needle stick injuries. Methods: A self-reported cross-sectional study was conducted in Sulaimani city governmental and non-governmental tertiary hospitals in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The data was collected by constructing a questionnaire form from 300 nurses who provide medical care by non-probability convenience sampling from October 1, 2022, to March 1, 2023. Results: 74.3% of the 223 nurses who participated in the study experienced needle stick injuries. The needle syringe (88.7%) was the most common tool involved. The sterilization of wound area 48.9% was the number-ranked action of the nurses after injury, followed by pushing the injured area 28.4% to drain blood. Most of the nurses did not receive post-injury prophylaxes (57.4%) or send their blood to additional tests (73.1%). Conclusions: Syringe needles were a major cause of the needle sticks, which injured three out of four participants. Additionally, the nurses' top priority after receiving a needle stick was to sterilize the exposed portion of the wounds.

Bloodborne viral infections: Seroprevalence and relevance of preoperative screening in Indian eye care system - A retrospective study.

To report the seroprevalence of bloodborne viral infection (BBVI) in patients undergoing ophthalmic surgeries and assess the utility and feasibility of preoperative screening for BBVI in India's current eye care system. This retrospective, hospital-based, descriptive study included data from patients undergoing preoperative screening for Hepatitis B virus (HBV), Hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) at a tertiary eye care institute from 2018 to 2022. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) were performed on the blood samples after obtaining informed consent from the patients. Seroreactive patients underwent surgery with additional safety precautions. The demographic data and surgical details of these patients were collected and analyzed. ANOVA was used to carry out statistical analysis between groups. During the study period, the number of healthcare workers (HCWs) sustaining needle stick injury (NSI) and accidental sharp injury (ASI) in the operating theater (OT) and details of these injuries were recorded. Samples from 28,563 patients were included. The seroprevalence of BBVI was 1.87% (536/28563). Hepatitis B virus (322, 60.1%) was the most commonly detected infection, and HIV (59, 11%) was the least detected infection. The mean age of the seroreactive patients was 60.3 ± 30.8 years. The incidence of NSI was 0.49/1000 surgeries. Nurses (11) and technicians (4) in the OT sustained maximum NSI. None of the HCWs had seroconversion after NSI. The overall seroprevalence of BBVI in the current study is lower than that reported in previously published studies from eye care organizations. Currently, mandatory preoperative screening for BBVI to prevent transmission of these infections to HCWs working in the eye care sector in India appears to be less cost-effective.

Needle Stick Injury: A Decade Retrospection Among Health Care Workers in a Tertiary Care Center.

Needle stick injury (NSI) is a common incidence in a health care facility which can have a great impact on the psychological status of a health care worker (HCW). In the present study, over a decade, 76 incidents of NSI were reported. Nurses (47.3%) were at high risk followed by doctors (28.94%). Recapping (30.2%) was the major activity associated with NSI. Percutaneous injury (97.3%) with a hollow bore needle to the fingers was the most common type of injury. Three (3.9%) of the sources were positive for Hepatitis B virus (HBV), and one (1.3%) for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Postexposure prophylaxis was administered to eight (10.5%) HCWs with high-risk exposure. The incidence of NSI is low, as there exists an underreporting which cannot be denied. Following stringent universal precautions and adoption of safety-guided devices can reduce the rate of injury to a great extent. Regular training, monitoring, auditing, and adequate control modalities are the core strategies to reduce the incidence of NSI.

A Study on the Incidence of Needle Stick Injuries among Nursing Interns

A Study on the Incidence of Needle Stick Injuries among Nursing Interns

The predictors of occupationally related injury in employees of Pasteur Institute of Iran

Background: Needlestick Injuries (NSI) are a critical occupational risk for healthcare workers. Therefore, the present study investigated the incidence and risk factors of NSI among employees of the Pasteur Institute of Iran, one of the largest and oldest biological research institutes in the country, who are at high risk of occupational exposure to biological agents. Methods: This cross-sectional study included all personnel (565 individuals) of the Pasteur Institute of Iran. Participants answered some questions related to demographic and occupational characteristics as well as occupational exposure to blood and biological products, and occupational protection. Findings: A total of 448 questionnaires were completed. The mean age (SD) and work experience of the participants were 35.62 (9.20) and 9.72 (1.30) years, respectively. A total of 150 individuals had a history of NSI. The mean (SD) ages of participants with and without a history of NSV were 37.40 ± 9.03 and 34.41 ± 8.80 years, respectively (p < 0.001). The occurrence of NSI was related to work experience of more than five years and drinking, eating, or smoking while working. In addition, changing gloves while using the telephone was significantly related to reporting the occurrence of NSI to the department manager. Conclusion: Our findings indicated the relatively high frequency of NSI among the respondents. Despite the importance of personnel training, we did not find the occurrence of NSI or reporting it to be related to attending training courses. Hence, designing efficient preventive and protective measures requires the assessment of the attitudes of the mentioned institute’s personnel toward NSI and its prevention and management.

Frequency of needle stick injuries among healthcare providers during large-scale SARS-CoV-2 vaccination brigades.

The frequency of needle stick-related accidents in large-scale vaccination brigades during the COVID-19 pandemic is unknown. We determined the incidence of needle stick injuries (NIs) from the SARS-CoV-2 vaccination brigades in the Monterrey metropolitan area. We calculated the rate of NI by 100,000 doses administered from a registry of over 4 million doses.

Incidence of needlestick injury among healthcare workers in western India.

Injuries occurring from contaminated sharps are a major occupational health hazard. It carries a risk of transmitting blood-borne diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Healthcare workers (HCWs), including personnel handling biomedical waste, are at risk. The objective of this study was to determine the incidence and details of needlestick injury (NSI) among HCWs. We analyzed data of all HCWs who reported NSI over the past three years. Demographic details, type and source of injury, use of personal protective equipment (PPE), immediate post-exposure measures, hepatitis B vaccination status and HCWs and source's HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C serological status were studied. Fifty-six cases of NSI were recorded over three years, accounting for an incidence of 10.4/100 occupied beds per year. Maximum cases (73.2%) occurred between the 20 and 40 yr age group. The distribution among the work category was doctors (37.5%), nursing staff (26.8%), phlebotomy technicians (12.5%), housekeeping/subordinate staff (12.5%) and others (10.7%). Appropriate PPE was donned by 66 per cent of the HCWs. The majority of cases (46.4%) occurred in wards and operating rooms (23.2%). Phlebotomy (35.7%), followed by procedures, such as hemoglucotest (HGT) measurement, intravenous cannula insertion and operative procedures (33.9%), were the most common situation during which HCWs suffered NSI. While 64.2 per cent HCWs were vaccinated for hepatitis B, only 5.4 per cent of the HCWs completed post-exposure anti-retroviral regimen. We conclude that a relative lack of awareness towards preventive measures and inexperience among HCWs may be contributory to high occurrence of NSI events. This study emphasizes upon ensuring active hospital-wide hepatitis B vaccination of all HCWs and supportive therapy to improve compliance towards post-exposure prophylaxis.

To study the incidences of needle stick injury among critical care nurses working in rural tertiary care hospital

Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) are a hazard for nursing staff and public health. Nursing workers are at high risk for occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens via sharp injuries of the needle-stick. Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) are described as penetrating wounds caused by a device that is contaminated with another person’s body fluids. Needle-stick injuries are injuries acquired by needles like -scalp vein needles, hypodermic needles, blood sample collection needles, intracath stylets, lumbar puncture needles used to connect parts of IV delivery systems. Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) form a medium for the transmission of bloodborne infections. Strict use of personnel protective equipment while working in the hospital should be made compulsory. To study incidences of needle stick injury among nurses working in Rural tertiary care Unit, Loni. Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the Institutional Ethical Committee. Seventy-six nurses, who fulfilled inclusion criteria were included and data was obtained through survey. This study involves 76 nursing staff. Of them all, 27(35.5%) nursing staff experienced NSIsThe administration of medication was common action that caused most of needle-stick injuries mentioned by 14 (18.4%) nursing staff. IV cannula was the device that caused many needle-stick injuries reported by 17 (21.1%) nursing staff. Thenursing professionals are the main key players in both elective and emergency situations. There is a quite higher incidence of needle stick injury among critical care nurses. This might be due to handling of emergency cases and attempting to secure the intravenous line or to deliver the medications. Creating awareness and training appropriately is mandatory for critical care nurses.

Global, regional and national incidence and causes of needlestick injuries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Needlestick injuries (NSIs) are one of the most serious occupational hazards for healthcare workers (HCWs). The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence and causes of NSIs globally. A systematic review and meta-analysis of data from January 2000 to May 2020 collected from Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess the quality of the included articles. The data obtained were analysed by R version 3/5/0, and 113 articles were retrieved. There were 113 studies with a total of 525 798 HCWs. The incidence of NSIs was 43%. Africa had the highest rate of these injuries of 51%, and the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region had the highest incidence among WHO regions of 52%. Women were more frequently affected by NSIs than men. Hepatitis C virus infection was the disease most commonly transmitted via NSIs (21%). The highest rates of NSIs according to causes, devices, hospital locations, occupations and procedures were for recapping of needles, needles, general wards, nurses and waste disposal, respectively. The incidence of NSIs is gradually decreasing. The findings of this study can contribute to improving the decision-making process for reducing NSIs in HCWs.

Incidence, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Toward Needle Stick Injury Among Health Care Workers in Abha City, Saudi Arabia.

BackgroundA needle stick injury is a serious occupational health hazard in health care settings. Health care workers are at risk of bloodborne diseases and the psychological consequences of these injuries. This study aims to estimate the incidence of needle stick injuries among healthcare workers during the previous 12 months and to assess their knowledge, attitude, and practice toward these injuries.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted from 1st August 2019 till 15th February 2020, and included 786 healthcare workers in Abha city, Saudi Arabia. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data.ResultsThe incidence of needle stick injury among healthcare workers during the previous 12 months was (91/786) 11.57%. Nurses, females, and Saudis reported most needle stick injuries. More than half (52.7%) of the injuries went unreported. About 52.7% of needle stick injuries occurred during using sharp devices, and 42.9% of injuries happened in the patient room. The incidence of needle stick injury was significantly higher among those working at the secondary healthcare level (p = 0.003) and those practicing surgery (p < 0.001). Out of 786 participants, 94.7% knew the definition of needle stick injury, and 81.0% were aware of the procedure and guidelines to follow on sustaining a needle stick injury. Only 61.2% recognized that the recap of the needle is not recommended. Almost half of the participants (47.1%) agreed, and 33.6% strongly agreed that needle stick injury is preventable. A majority of healthcare workers (89.1%) had been vaccinated against Hepatitis B. Nearly 27.5% of healthcare workers incorrectly practiced recapping the needles with two hands and 8.7% bent needles before disposal. Recapping the needles was statistically significantly higher among healthcare workers who had a history of needle stick injury (p = 0. 046).ConclusionNeedle stick injury and its under reporting among healthcare professionals is still a prevalent risk. Raising awareness among healthcare workers and improving the reporting systems for needle stick injuries to ensure more protection and early use of post-exposure prophylaxis is required. Implementation of safety precautions and safe injection practices and providing engineered safety devices may further reduce the risk.

A study of needle-stick injury incidence amongst healthcare workers and its root cause analysis in a tertiary care teaching hospital

Background: Needle-stick injury (NSI) incidence is a major occupational hazard amongst healthcare workers (HCWs).Methods: In this retrospective study conducted amongst HCWs from October 2018 to October 2019, we aimed to know the incidence of NSI and its root cause. At the time of self-reporting of NSI, details were collected regarding mode of injury, viral markers of source and HCWs and vaccination status of HCWs. Exposed HCWs were followed up till 6 months for seroconversion.Results: A total of 47 NSIs were reported during the study period. The incidence rate per annum was 0.13. The NSI incidence was high in intensive care units (ICUs) (47%) and was commonly due to recapping needles (36.2%). Amongst 12 NSIs, sources were positive for viral markers (6 for hepatitis B virus [HBV], 5 for human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] and 1 for hepatitis C virus). Amongst four completely vaccinated HCWs exposed to HBV-positive sources, two had anti-HBV antibody titres <10 mIu/ml. No seroconversion was seen in any of the exposed HCWs during follow-up.Conclusions: The annual incidence of NSI in our hospital was 0.13 and was high in ICUs. This prompted the institution of training sessions for HCWs to reduce the NSIs.

Factors associated with needlestick injuries among healthcare workers: implications for prevention

BackgroundOur study sought to determine the frequency of Needlestick injuries (NSIs) among Healthcare Workers (HCWs) working at governmental hospital and to study the factors that associated with occurrence of NSIs, and to develop recommendations for a comprehensive program for prevention.MethodsRetrospective study of all reported cases of NSIs in the period from April 2016 to May 2018 among healthcare workers at a governmental hospital.ResultsIncidence of NSIs over 26 months was 8.4% among all participants. Nurses were the most affected staff (52.5%) resulted commonly from disposing syringes (58.9%). In contrast, the incidence of NSIs among physicians was 24.9% where surgical devices were the primary source of NSIs among them (40%). Failure to complete all required hepatitis B vaccination was common among expatriates of the participants of this study.ConclusionsNSIs was common among HCWs participated in this study. Preventive measures should be implemented including adequate hepatitis B immunization.

Prevalence, student nurses\u2019 knowledge and practices of needle stick injuries during clinical training: a cross-sectional survey

BackgroundThe incidence of needle stick injuries is higher among nurses with a low level of knowledge on the prevention of needle stick injury, and who have not received the relevant training during their undergraduate study. The aim of this study was to determine the level of knowledge of the prevention guidelines and the prevalence of needle stick injury among students in Oman.MethodsAn online cross-sectional survey using a questionnaire and involving 167 students from a governmental university was conducted. The questionnaire consists of 30 questions; eight general questions, knowledge related questions, and questions about risk factors, prevention measures, and actions in a case of needle stick injury. Ethical approval was obtained and the link to the survey was shared with students using their university email portal.ResultsOf the participants, 81.2% were females; mean age was 23.3 (SD = 4.5) years. The mean total knowledge score was 6.6 out of 10 (SD = 2.1). In addition, 18.2% (n = 32) of the students experienced needle stick injury. Most of the injuries 71.9% (n = 24) occurred during medication preparation and administration. The main cause of NSI as reported by students was recapping the needles (59%, n = 19).ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that student nurses have a moderate level of knowledge about needle stick injury prevention measures and lack many facets of safe infection control practice. These findings require the collaborative effort of nursing administrators from both academic and clinical areas, to develop effective strategies to reduce or eliminate the occurrence of needle stick injury.

Meta analysis: Relationship of recapping actions and years of service with the incidence of needle stick injury in health workers at health facilities

Meta analysis: Relationship of recapping actions and years of service with the incidence of needle stick injury in health workers at health facilities

Leveraging Partnerships to Reduce Insulin Needlestick Injuries: Nurse-Led System-Wide Quality Improvement Project.

Percutaneous injuries from needlesticks are a major occupational hazard for nurses. Reducing subcutaneous insulin-related needlestick injuries was part of a nurse-led comprehensive sharps injury-reduction program at an integrated, not-for-profit health system. The incident rate of needlestick injuries was compared between 1 year before and 1 year after introducing this quality improvement project. A system-wide educational program instituting changes in subcutaneous insulin administration practices was combined with supply chain standardization using a single type of safety-engineered insulin syringe. The average monthly incidence of needlestick injuries per 10 000 subcutaneous insulin injections fell significantly from year to year (incidence rate ratio, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.30-0.80; Poisson regression P = .004). One-year cost savings for supplies totaled $3500; additional annual median savings were $24 875 (2019 US dollars) in estimated costs of needlestick injuries averted. The effectiveness of this multifaceted project provides a practical template to reduce subcutaneous insulin-related needlestick injuries.

Prevalence of needlestick injuries among nursing interns: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The aim of the present study was to analyze the prevalence of needlestick injuries (NSI) of trainee nursing students and to understand the cause of injury and psychological reactions following injury, and take corresponding countermeasures to prevent adverse consequences. Multiple databases were used to search for articles related to NSI among nursing interns. The selected literature was retrospectively evaluated by using Review Manager version 5.2. According to the analysis of 8 published studies, the lowest overall prevalence of NSI occupational exposure was 6% [95% confidence interval (CI): 3-9%], the highest was 51% (95% CI: 42-60%), and the total combined prevalence was 27% (95% CI: 18-37%). The overall prevalence rate of interns under 25 years old was 31% (95% CI: 7-69%), and that of interns over 25 years old was 26% (95% CI: 15-38%). The overall prevalence of interns was 38% (95% CI: 16-61%) in developing countries and 21% (95% CI: 11-31%) in developed countries. The overall prevalence of interns was 38% (95% CI: 16-61%) in Asian countries, 9% (95% CI: 3-15%) in the United States, and 30% (95% CI: 3-57%) in European countries. The results showed that interns over 25 years of age were more likely to have NSI, and interns in developing countries were more likely to have NSI than those in developed countries. Interns in Asia were more likely to have NSI than interns in Europe, and the lowest incidence of NSI was among interns in the USA.

Reducing police occupational needle stick injury risk following an interactive training: the SHIELD cohort study in Mexico

ObjectiveAt a time of unprecedented attention to the public health impact of policing, it is imperative to understand the role of occupational safety in shaping officer behaviours. We assessed the...

Knowledge and practices of needle stick injury prevention among nursing personnel in a tertiary care teaching hospital in South India

A needle stick injury (NSI) is an accidental skin‑penetrating stab wound from a hollow‑bore needle containing another person’s blood or body fluid, leading to transmission of blood borne infections such as hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and human immunodeficiency virus. Nurses are the core care providers for patients in the hospital and thus have the highest rate of needle stick injury among all the health care workers. This is possibly be due to performance of invasive and non-invasive procedures to the patients besides injection administration more often than any other staff. a) To assess the knowledge of Needle stick injuries (NSI) among nursing staffs, b) To determine the practices of Needdle stick injury prevention (NSI) among nursing staffs of a tertiary care teaching hospital.M A cross sectional study was conducted by using a structured questionnaire having close ended and multiple choice questions, 10 in knowledge parameters and 15 in practice parameters respectively, designed from previously published literature. Informed verbal consent was taken prior to distribution of the self reporting Questionnaire and 100 nursing staffs were included. Minitab software version 19 was used for data analysis. 1st Jan 2020 to 31st March, 2020 (3 months).Response rate was 80%, Incidence of NSI was 45%, Only 24% of the nurses were aware of the definition of NSI, about 90% of them were aware of the infections transmitted, 85% of them are unaware of ‘no-recapping’ technique of disposal, 90% of them were aware of standard precautions, Overall knowledge is adequate among 65% nurses. Only 35% nurses reported their NSI after incident, 24% knew post exposure prophylaxis, 98% of the reported NSI incidents NSI were due to recapping of needles. NSIs were highly prevalent among nurses. Injection practices needs improvement. Procedures associated with higher risks of NSIs such as recapping of needles, non-wearing of gloves, improper disposal of sharps and others should be strongly discouraged.