Sharps Disposal Research Articles

2.10 Safe use and disposal of sharps

British Journal of Healthcare AssistantsVol. 8, No. 6 Clinical2.10 Safe use and disposal of sharpsMenna Lloyd JonesMenna Lloyd JonesSearch for more papers by this authorMenna Lloyd JonesPublished Online:12 Jun 2014https://doi.org/10.12968/bjha.2014.8.6.276AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail View article References Beckett G, Bright J (2013) Preventing exposure to blood and body fluids. Nursing and Residential Care 15(1): 34–7 Link, Google ScholarDougherty L, Lister S (eds) (2012) The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual Of Clinical Procedures. Student edn. 8th edn. Wiley-Blackwell, London Google ScholarHealth and Safety Executive (HSE) (2013) New Regulations On Preventing Sharps Injuries In The Healthcare Sector. http://tinyurl.com/dxgvkrk (accessed 13 May 2014) Google ScholarRoyal College of Nursing (RCN) (2013) Sharps Safety. RCN Guidance To Support The Implementation Of The Heath And Safety (Sharp Instruments In Healthcare) Regulation, 2013. http://tinyurl.com/cdznrpq (accessed 13 May 2014) Google Scholar FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails 2 June 2014Volume 8Issue 6ISSN (print): 1753-1586ISSN (online): 2052-4420 Metrics History Published online 12 June 2014 Published in print 2 June 2014 Information© MA Healthcare LimitedPDF download

Do ward and department managers know their responsibilities in relation to the management of sharps, and is this reflected in the way that they practise sharps management?

Needlestick injuries (NSIs) involving hollowbore needles are the most commonly reported occupational exposure within the healthcare sector in the United Kingdom (HPA, 2012). It is estimated that at least 100,000 NSIs occur each year but due to under-reporting the figure may be much higher (RCN, 2008). Many strategies aimed at preventing NSIs have been implemented in the healthcare environment, including administrative controls, safer work practices and engineering controls, but despite these measures NSIs remain a serious health and safety threat (EU, 2010). New legislation has now been introduced as part of EU Directive 2010/32/EU, which requires UK and all EU member states to bring into force regulations, laws and administrative provisions to further protect healthcare workers from sustaining NSIs (EU Directive, 2010). The aim of this study was to determine the degree of responsibility that NHS ward/department managers felt they have in relation to the prevention and management of NSIs and if this was reflected in the way that they carry out relevant practices in their clinical environment. The study also aimed to identify factors which might impact on the ward/department managers' ability to manage sharps effectively. The study found that although ward/department managers did acknowledge a high degree of responsibility overall for the prevention and management of NSIs, there were some concerns highlighted in relation to certain practices. These included not ensuring that all staff had received up to date training on the safe use and disposal of sharps and not disseminating information on NSI incidences and outcomes to staff in their clinical areas. The findings of this study have the potential to inform and enhance future training and education schedules that relate to NSI prevention and management and to improve the corporate strategic commitment to reducing NSIs across healthcare organisations.

An alternative method of anaesthesia for implant insertion: description of a clinical initiative in contraceptive care

Adequate anaesthesia is an important procedural step when inserting contraceptive implants. Whilst the product information for Nexplanon® describes a choice of anaesthetic spray or injection for insertion,1 the Faculty of...

A study on knowledge and awareness of standard precautions among health care workers at Nizam′s institute of medical sciences Hyderabad

Aim: The aim was to assess the knowledge and awareness of standard precautions among heath care workers that is, doctors, nurses, and technicians. Setting and Design: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in September and October 2013 at Nizam's institute of medical sciences, Hyderabad. Materials and Methods: A 40-item questionnaire was provided to 180 health care workers including doctors, medical technicians and nurses to assess their knowledge and awareness of standard precautions under seven divisions namely general information on standard precautions, care of skin and hand washing, personal protective equipment (PPE), procedure for the safe handling and disposal of sharps, postexposure prophylaxis, bio medical waste and linen disposal, knowledge on blood borne and other pathogens. Statistical Analysis: Chi-square test has been used to compare the relevant groups. Results: It was observed that 96 (53.3%) respondents are very knowledgeable and 84 (46.7%) were somewhat knowledgeable. In the very knowledgeable category, there were 38 doctors, 24 nurses and 34 technicians. 48 (57.1%) males and 48 (50%) female respondents were found to be very knowledgeable. With respect to length of service, 21 (53.8%) respondents in 0-5 years of service category, 18 (60%) in 5-10 years category and 57 (48.7%) in >10 years category were found to be very knowledgeable. Conclusions: Knowledge of standard precautions was highest among doctors (63.3%), followed by technicians (56.6%) and nurses (40.0%). There is a significant difference in knowledge and awareness of standard precautions among studied health care professionals (P = 0.031). Knowledge and awareness of standard precautions did not vary significantly between males and females (P > 0.05). There is no significant difference in knowledge and awareness of standard precautions among groups, with respect to length of service (P > 0.05). The studied population was not very knowledgeable in division's namely PPE, sharps disposal and bio-medical waste disposal.

Needle stick injuries in restorative dentistry: The need for prevention

Risk of exposure to blood‑borne pathogens has always been a problem for healthcare professionals including dental professionals. The emergence of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in 1981 brought the issue to the forefront of public health policy. Percutaneous injuries, which include needle stick injuries (NSI), expose dental healthcare workers to deadly blood‑borne pathogens such as Hepatitis C virus (HCV), Hepatitis B virus (HBV), and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The risk of transmission of HCV, HBV, and HIV from patient to the healthcare personnel is 3%, 30%, and 0.3%, respectively. [1,2] Although the likelihood of being infected by a blood‑borne virus (BBV) may be low after a single exposure, the consequences for the dental professional who becomes infected are potentially serious and include the potential of transmission of blood‑borne pathogens and associated detrimental effects on their personal and professional lives. [3] Needles used for injecting local anesthesia during restorative procedures and the use of sharps during endodontic and prosthodontic procedures pose a high risk of transmission of BBVs. Procedures in restorative dentistry that may make the patient to cause a sudden jerky movement can lead to increase probability of NSI. Thus, education and training regarding the use of universal precautions when handling body fluids should be conducted. New employees should go through the training program stressing the need to report all injuries and the availability of chemoprophylaxis. Improving sharps disposal by introducing improved sharps containers in the dental clinics. Sharps should be disposed immediately. Recapping and re‑sheathing should be discouraged and new arrangements for sharps disposal should be done to avoid overfilling boxes. NSI prevention strategies for dental professionals should be implemented in the dental curriculum and during the pre‑occupational/occupational training programs. Since a relatively high percentage of patients are positive for major blood‑borne infections, the risk of exposure to blood‑borne pathogens for healthcare workers through NSI should not be ignored. Regular health checkups, tests for serum antibodies and antigens of HBV, and appropriate hepatitis B vaccination are mandatory for occupational safety of healthcare workers. Report of NSI cases should be encouraged since it is needed for root cause analysis of the adverse events and future prevention. The report of NSI events is also highly important for the injured parties in view of risk assessment and implementation of appropriate prophylactic measures for blood‑borne infections.

The importance of implementing safe sharps practices in the laboratory setting in Europe

Healthcare workers are at risk of sharps injuries and subsequent infection from more than 40 bloodborne pathogens or species. Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) together account for the vast majority of cases. The Directive 2010/32/EU “Prevention from sharp injuries in the hospital and healthcare sector”, issued to protect workers from these risks, requires an integrated approach to prevention including awareness-raising, education, training, elimination of unnecessary needles, safe procedures for sharps use and disposal, banning of recapping, vaccination, use of personal protective equipment, provision of safety-engineered devices, and appropriate surveillance, monitoring, response and follow-up.As laboratories represent a high-risk setting both in the preanalytical and analytical phase, we reviewed accidents and prevention in this setting in the light of the new legislation.Phlebotomy is the procedure carrying the highest risk of exposure and infection, involved in 30–50% of HIV and HCV cases detected in nationwide systems following accidental blood exposures implemented since the 1990s in Italy and France. In laboratories, problems in the management of sharps containers, recapping, needle disassembly by hand and blood transfer from syringes into tubes were observed and accounted for two-thirds of injuries. These accidents could be reduced through education and monitoring of behaviours, and introduction of medical devices incorporating safety-engineered protection mechanisms with appropriate training. Laboratory staff should be immunized against HBV, and know policies and procedures for the post-exposure management and prophylaxis. The management commitment to safety is crucial to ensure the necessary support to these changes.

Work accidents with biological material occurred in municipalities of Minas Gerais

The study aimed to identify the profile accidents involving exposure to biological material occurring in Minas Gerais. A descriptive study carried out by querying the Information System for Notifiable Diseases, 50 cities in south of Minas Gerais State, Brazil, in the period of 2007-2011. Were recorded 460 accidents, and about half occurred among nursing assistants and technicians, followed by nurses and physicians. There were more accidents due to improper disposal of sharps. Among the source patients, there was a 8.0% prevalence of positive serology for HIV, 1.0% for HBsAg, 6.0% for anti-HBc and 3% for anti-HCV. Among the injured 14.0% were not immunized to hepatitis B; however, the vaccine and immunoglobulin prescription was lower than necessary. The results will subsidize the plan preventive measures and new approach towards the occurrence of such accidents.

Behavior, perception and compliance related to adoption of safety measures in response to needle stick injuries among nursing personnel at a tertiary care institute of North India

Background: Needle stick injuries (NSIs) caused by sharp instruments such as hypodermic needles, blood collection needles; intravenous (IV) cannula or needles used to connect parts of IV delivery system are common in clinical practice. A potential risk of transmission of various fatal diseases such as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, hepatitis and others have been a matter of serious concern in busy clinical settings. Aim and Objectives: The present survey study was carried out to evaluate the prevalence of NSIs among nursing personnel of our institute so as to identify the potential risk factors responsible for possibly acquiring NSIs. The study also aims to reinforce uniformly the recommended preventive measures by the nursing personnel in our institute with the formulation and implementation of newer preventive strategies by hospital authorities. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was carried out from July 2012 to November 2012 in the nursing department of our hospital. Informed verbal consent was taken from nursing personnel prior to distribution of the self-reporting questionnaire. Questions related to awareness such as cause of NSIs, number of NSIs, procedures that caused NSIs, clinical response of personnel after injury, preventive measures like hepatitis B immunization, use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and reasons for not using the PPE and training regarding prevention of NSIs were also included. A total of 179 staff nurses from all clinical areas of the hospital participated in this study excluding those who were on any kind of long leave. Statistical analysis was performed by using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 15 for windows and value of P < 0.05 was considered as significant and P < 0.001 as highly significant. Results: Almost more than half of the nursing personnel (57.5%) had NSIs at one occasion or the other. Nearly 58% nursing personnel had NSIs for 3-times and few had even more than 10 times. NSIs during bedside care of the patient (57.2%) were reported as one of the significant potentially vulnerable location to get the NSIs as compared with the operation theater and emergency (5%) areas (P < 0.001). About 92% of the nursing personnel reported that needles used in routine injection practices were the main instrument that caused NSIs as compared with the hypodermic needle and surgical blades. Recapping of needles (66%) was the main procedure that caused NSIs as compared to IV line (20.4%) and others (P < 0.001). Around 81% nurses were already vaccinated against hepatitis B before the survey study. Conclusion: NSIs are highly prevalent among nurses. Injection practices have to be improved with reinforcing and modification of existing preventive measures. 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 so as to decrease the incidence of NSIs and morbidity and mortality associated with it.

Reducing sharps injuries in veterinary practice

Sharps are used in the veterinary environment on a daily basis. The NHS European Office (2013) has recently changed the guidelines to sharps, to reduce the number of incidents occurring and the costs involved from related injuries causing time off for sickness, from counselling and from tests in the NHS for blood-borne pathogens. There is little evidence on the number of needle-stick injuries in veterinary practice in the UK compared with in America, Canada, Australia and in the NHS. This article highlights alternative consumable devices that can be used in place of sharps to protect staff in veterinary practice, the correct and safe disposal of sharps and the risks involved with the use of sharps.

Awareness And Preventive Measures Against Hepatitis B Virus Infection Among Dental Surgeons In Lagos State

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the awareness of Hepatitis B Virus(HBV) infection among Dental Surgeons in Lagos state and to identify preventive measures adopted against HBV infection.Materials and Methods: 220 structured self-administered questionnaires about knowledge of HBV and infection control measures were distributed to Dentists in Lagos University Teaching Hospital; Lagos State University Teaching Hospital; Military Hospital, Yaba, Lagos; Military Hospital, Bonny Camp, Victoria Island, Lagos; Randle General Hospital, Surulere, Lagos; General Hospital Lagos and 12 Private Dental Clinics. The response rate was 85 percent.Results: A high level of awareness and knowledge of HBV infection was demonstrated in this study compared to previous studies.22 15 This however did not translate into a commensurate increase in crossinfection control practices. 71 percent of Dentists usually took a detailed medical history of their patients. 66.3 percent had been vaccinated against Hepatitis B Virus; 94.5 percent wore and changed gloves during treatment and 100 percent in between patients; 36 percent wore and changed face masks during treatment and in between patients. 66.9 percent used autoclaves for sterilization, 62 percent had special containers for sharps disposal while 50% always used sterilization wrappers. Only 26 percent always disinfected working surfaces in between patients. Based on these responses, only a small percentage of Dentists in this sample were considered to be compliantwith an inventory of standard infection control procedures.Conclusions: There is a great need in Lagos, perhaps in Nigeria as a whole for the adoption and implementation of standard infection procedures and the provision of formal and obligatory infection control courses and guidelines for Dental Surgeons by the Ministry of Health and the Dental Association, in addition to distribution of standard infection control manuals that incorporate current infection control recommendations.Keywords: Hepatitis B Virus (HBV), Occupational Hazard, Cross Infection, Post Exposure prophylaxis (PEP), Dental Surgeons.

Harm reduction: A canadian perspective

Maintenance Therapy (MMT) found that they not only dispensed, but "almost half (48%) provided information on drug interactions with OST [Opioid Substitution Therapy] medication; side effects of medication (38%); accessing support services (30%); smoking cessation (30%); blood-borne virus exposure risks (10%); vein care (8%); and other services or information (12%), including dental hygiene, general health, practical parenting advice, internet-based resources and counselling." 4

NSI: A major occupational hazards among the health care workers in Nepal

A percutaneous piercing wound as in needle stick injury is a typically set by a needle point, but possibly also by other sharp instruments or objects. These events are of concern because of the risk to transmit blood-borne diseases through the passage of the hepatitis B virus (HBV), the hepatitis C virus (HCV), and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus which causes AIDS. The present study was done to determine the risk status regarding NSI among health care workers of Private Hospitals, Pokhara, Nepal. Samples were selected through purposive sampling. Self administered questionnaire &amp; risk assessment tool were used to collect data. Study revealed that majority of health care workers were females (93%) with mean age of 22.66 years (±3.1). Sixty eight percent had got NSI, among them 41% had NSI more than 2times in life. Maximum NSI cases happened either by recapping of the needle (18%) or during disposal of sharps (16%) or while transferring a body fluid (blood) to a specimen bottle (15%). The study concludes that majority of health workers had NSI more than two times which denotes NSI is a major occupational hazard. Cases happened either by recapping of the needle or during disposal of sharps or while transferring a body fluid to a specimen bottle. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijosh.v3i1.9098 International Journal of Occupational Safety and Health, Vol 3 No 1 (2013) 22-25

Worker safety in Designated Microscopy Centers (DMC) and Tuberculosis unit (TU) under Revised National Tuberculosis Control programme (RNTCP) in state of Bihar – Contribution &amp; Role of DTST

Damien Foundation India Trust (DFIT), one of the members of International Federation of Anti-Leprosy associations (ILEP) are involved in providing technical and financial support in leprosy and TB control through its projects spread across the country. While support to leprosy control started way back in 1982 through its own project, support to TB control started only in 2003. This study was part of evaluation taken to assess the role of DTST in achieving the planned objectives and to assess the impact of DFIT’s involvement in TB control. To assess the current status of worker safety in DMC/TUs of RNTCP centers in state of Bihar and the role and contribution of DTST in ensuring the same. This cross sectional evaluation study was undertaken in randomly selected 8 DMCs/ TUs in rural areas of two districts of Bihar state in 2007. Evaluation was done using pre-tested observational checklist and personal discussions with key personnel. Evaluation included assessment of role &amp; contribution of DTST with respect to infrastructure &amp; resource availability; Training and capacity building; Practice regarding safe disposal of infected materials &amp; worker safety. Most of the civil works was complete in functional DMC/ TUs visited. Sharp pits for sharp disposal were available in only 50% of DMCs/TUs. Staffing position complete to nearly 80%. DTST role in capacity building training, infrastructure availably and monitoring of the programme has been remarkable. However there is a need to emphasis on importance of the worker safety and universal precautions during training. Effective implementation of clearly laid down National guidelines &amp; policy keeping in lieu of the worker safety is the need of the hour when the programme gets streamlined in the general health system.

Epidemiology of sharp injuries – Prospective EPINet data from five tertiary care hospitals in India – Data for 144 cumulated months, 1.5 million inpatient days

AimsSharp injuries (SIs) jeopardize the safety of healthcare workers and are avoidable. This prospective multi-centric study aimed at understanding the epidemiology of sharp injuries in India. This study comes as a sequel to our earlier study, conducted at the same hospitals. MethodsThe cumulated prospective data of 144 months collected from five participating hospitals during the years 2008–2013 and analysed using the EPINet format. ResultsDuring the study period of 2008–2013, there were more than 1.5 million inpatient (IP) days, and 666 SIs (0.43 SIs/1000 IP days) were observed. The data from June 2008 through May 2009 was named data A and from June 2009 through June 2011 as data B. The data in its entirety and the comparison of data A and B was made. The cumulated data showed that the SIs in the patient's room decreased from 0.9 to 0.2 SIs/1000 IP days (27.8%–14.3%). This observation was made in the data from all the participating hospitals; possibly due to providing sharps disposal cans by patient bedside, in addition to aforementioned awareness and educational activities. The SIs among nurses doubled (from 0.01 to 0.02/1000 IP days) and increased among housekeeping personnel. ConclusionSIs caused during the period commencing from completion of injection to disposal decreased in all the participant hospitals, suggesting that the healthcare workers handled the sharps appropriately; however, probably due to wrong disposal, personnel involved in waste disposal got more injuries. Safety engineered devices are not implemented in Indian hospitals despite data supporting their use decreasing SIs.

Reducing Occupational Risk for Blood and Body Fluid Exposure Among Home Care Aides: An Intervention Effectiveness Study

The purpose of this quasi-experimental pretest/posttest research study was to examine the effectiveness of an intervention designed through a participatory process to reduce blood and body fluid exposure among home care aides. Employer A, the intervention site, was a large agency with approximately 1,200 unionized home care aides. Employer B, the comparison group, was a medium-sized agency with approximately 200 home care aides. The intervention was developed in partnership with labor and management and included a 1-day educational session utilizing peer educators and active learning methods to increase awareness about the risks for occupational exposure to blood and body fluids among home care aides and a follow-up session introducing materials to facilitate communication with clients about safe sharps disposal. Self-administered preintervention and postintervention questionnaires identifying knowledge about and self-reported practices to reduce bloodborne pathogen exposure were completed in person during mandatory training sessions 18 months apart. Home care aides in the intervention group for whom the preintervention and postintervention questionnaires could be directly matched reported an increase in their clients’ use of proper sharps containers (31.9% pre to 52.2% post; p = .033). At follow-up, the intervention group as a whole also reported increased use of sharps containers among their clients when compared to controls (p = .041).

A dermatology surgical safety checklist: an objective resident performance tool

A dermatology surgical safety checklist: an objective resident performance tool

Nurse-led educational campaign on blood borne pathogens and proper sharps disposal at an urban tertiary hospital in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

In Africa, where the regional prevalence of HIV is the highest in the world, the rate of needlestick injuries in healthcare workers is also the highest, despite the fact that such injuries are vastly underreported. Needlestick injuries pose a significant risk to healthcare workers and are the most common source of occupational exposure to blood. Due to recurrent needlestick injuries in healthcare workers at the site, nurses from the Muhimbili National Hospital Emergency Medicine Department (MNH EMD) in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania initiated a campaign to teach health assistants, nurses, and medical doctors the hazards of needlestick injuries, and to enforce proper sharps disposal for prevention. We conducted a 2-week educational campaign on hazards and prevention of needlestick injury. To evaluate the acquisition and retention of lessons from this campaign, 61 participants underwent an immediate and delayed (at 2 months distance) post-training exam. To evaluate the impact of the campaign, we collected data on the rate of overfilled sharps boxes, before, during and after the campaign. Scores on both immediate and delayed testing on bloodborne pathogen transmission and proper sharps disposal were very high. The number of overfilled safety boxes dramatically decreased during and immediately following the training phase of this campaign, but exceeded pre-intervention levels only 2 weeks after the completion of the campaign. The results of this study suggest that even with very high levels of immediate and delayed retention of educational content as measured by exam, the impact of an educational intervention on behavioural change may be much more short-lived. This has implications regarding the need for continuous education to support for workplace safety campaigns.

EFFECT OF HEALTH EDUCATION PROGRAM ABOUT BLOOD BORNE PATHOGENS (BBPS) TRANSMISSION ON PRIMARY HEALTH CARE WORKERS IN ISMAILIA CITY (AN INTERVENTION STUDY)

Introduction: Among 35 million Health Care Workers worldwide, about 3 million primary health care workers (PHCWs) experience percutaneous exposures to blood borne pathogens (BBPs) each year, these percutaneous injuries may result in 15000 HCV and 70000 HBV and 1000 HIV infections, which lead to about 1100 deaths and significant disabilities. More than 90% of these infections occur in developing countries. Aim of Work: The present study was conducted for prevention of BBPs transmission to HCWs through: determining their base line knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding Blood Borne Infectious Diseases (BBIPs) transmission, prevention and control, preparing and adopting a health education program for primary health care workers safety against BBIPs and evaluation for recommended generalization. Materials and Methods: A concise situational analysis was done first, then, an intervention health education program was conducted in all primary health care centers present in Ismailia city (4 centers) aiming to improve knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of 170 PHCWs (physicians, nurses and technicians who accepted to participate in this research) about BBPs, related universal precautions (UP) and preventive measures. Evaluation of this intervention was done by assessment of the change in PHCWs KAP regarding BBIDs UP and preventive measures. Results: This study showed that (45.9%) of PHCWs had complete courses of HBV vaccination, also 39.4% of PHCWs received at least one previous training course related to BBIDs. About 41.8% of PHCWs were exposed to needle sticks injuries in the last year, where workers, nurses and laboratory technicians had a higher percentage of exposure more than dentists and physicians. Nearly 34.4% of subjects, who tested, were seropositive for BBIDs. Mean total knowledge score of 5.23 ± 2.13 and 4.31 ± 2.17 About BBIDs and UP respectively with a highly significant difference (P < 0.05). Also, PHCWs in Ismailia City have a high significant positive attitude towards UP and preventive measures (P < 0.001) while no significant difference was detected regarding their practice to most items of UP whereas (55.3%) have a poor practice of UP for BBIDs. After application of health education program, there was a highly significant improvement (P< 0.001) in the PHCWs knowledge regarding blood spells, no two-handed recapping of needles and hand washing after dealing with the patient (improved mean total knowledge score about BBIDs among all PHCWs except the physicians) but no improvement in workers’ knowledge about sharp waste disposal. Conclusion and Recommendation: Although health education got a positive impact on PHCWs’ safety by improvement of their knowledge and attitude regarding BBIDs and its UP, but still they have poor practice regarding UP of BBIPs. We recommend that HCWS training, to be available for free, complete coverage of vaccinations together with continuous supervision for UP application and post exposure management.

Awareness About Needle Stick Injures and Sharps Disposal: A Study Conducted at Army College of Dental Sciences

The present study aims to assess the knowledge and attitude about needle stick injuries and sharps disposal. A self designed questionnaire of 15 questions was handed out to 200 participants including undergraduate students (group 1), postgraduate students (group 2), faculty members (group 3) and auxiliary staff members (group 4). The data was collected and analyzed using Chi square test. Sixty-one percent of total participants reported of experiencing needle stick injury and 25.5% knew that there could be several causes for this. Only 22% of total population studied got the source tested. Immunization status of group 4 was very low and they also lacked the knowledge of sharps disposal and hepatitis C being spread by needle stick injuries. 57% participants confirmed that there was no reporting facility and 66% were not familiar with the guidelines of reporting. There is a definite scope of improvement in terms of reporting and prevention of needle stick injuries. There is a need to improve knowledge and awareness of dental health care workers about the post exposure protocol.

Acidente com material biológico no atendimento pré-hospitalar móvel: realidade para trabalhadores da saúde e não saúde

Estudo analítico transversal, com objetivos de identificar a prevalência e caracterizar os acidentes com material biológico entre profissionais do Atendimento Pré-Hospitalar (APH) e comparar os comportamentos de risco adotados entre os grupos saúde e não saúde que podem influenciar na ocorrência e na gravidade destes acidentes. Dados foram obtidos por meio de questionário aplicado a todos os trabalhadores do APH de Goiânia - GO. Verificou-se alta prevalência de acidentes envolvendo material biológico que, apesar de maior no grupo saúde, também acometeu o grupo não saúde. Comportamentos de risco, estatisticamente significativos (p&lt;0,05), para ocorrência de acidentes em ambos os grupos: não uso de luvas, máscara e óculos de proteção, descarte inapropriado de perfuro-cortante, vestimenta incompleta, reencape de agulhas e não imunização contra hepatite B. Os dados evidenciaram a importância da adesão às medidas preventivas por ambos os grupos e a necessidade de estruturação e implementação de um sistema de vigilância e controle deste tipo de acidente.