Category: Needlestick Prevention
Bloodborne Pathogen Exposures Continue in Operating Room Settings
Despite legislation and improved technology, data from Massachusetts hospitals show that sharps injuries have increased in the operating room (OR) [1]. These injuries place healthcare workers at risk of exposure to bloodborne pathogens (BBPs). There is an urgent need to renew efforts to protect healthcare workers inside the operating room. The Massachusetts data highlight a gap Read More >
Posted on by Leave a commentPreventing Needlesticks and Sharps Injuries: Reflecting on the 20th Anniversary of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act
November marked the 20th anniversary of the passage of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act (PL 106-430) into law. The act required that OSHA amend its Bloodborne Pathogens Standard to include additional protections for workers to prevent occupational exposures to blood and body fluids. This included: new requirements for the evaluation and use of engineering Read More >
Posted on by 10 CommentsDoes your workplace culture help protect you from hepatitis?
May 19, 2013, is Hepatitis Testing Day. Health care workers are at risk of contracting hepatitis B and C in the workplace. Doctors, nurses, and other staff are predominately exposed to these devastating diseases through needle sticks and other sharps injuries or when fluids from patients splash onto their eyes, nose, or mouth. Hepatitis B Read More >
Posted on by 17 CommentsPuncture: Exposure for Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure
The movie "Puncture" tells the story of a nurse who contracts AIDS from a needle while at work. Unfortunately, this all-too-common scenario is not fiction. Read more about accidental needlesticks and a program from NIOSH that can reduce these injuries substantially. Read More >
Posted on by 8 CommentsPreventing Needlesticks in Surgical Personnel
Each year an estimated 385,000 needlesticks and other sharps-related injuries are sustained by hospital-based healthcare personnel; an average of 1,000 sharps injuries per day. Read More >
Posted on by 6 Comments