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 Ahmed Gomaa, MD, ScD, MSPH; Sarah Hughes, MPH; Sue Afanuh, MA; and Amy Mobley, MEnLeave a comment

Preventing Needlestick Injuries at COVID–19 Vaccination Sites

The need to administer large numbers of COVID–19 vaccines means work conditions may be dramatically different from the traditional setting. Administering vaccines to a large number of people in a variety of settings may increase the risk for needlestick injuries among vaccinators and other vaccination site workers. Needlestick injuries have the potential to transmit bloodborne pathogens (BBP), like hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). This blog recommends safety measures to reduce needlestick injuries and exposures to bloodborne pathogens. Read More >

Posted on by Ahmed Gomaa, L. Casey Chosewood, Marie Haring Sweeney, Susan Afanuh, Sarah Hughes, Adam Hornbeck, and Amy Mobley12 Comments

Preventing 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 Amber Hogan Mitchell, DrPH, MPH, CPH9 Comments

Does 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 Thomas Cunningham, PhD, and Garrett Burnett, MS, MBA 17 Comments

Puncture: 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 Thomas Cunningham, PhD, and Garrett Burnett, MS, MBA8 Comments

Preventing 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 Walter Alarcon, MD, MSc6 CommentsTags ,