Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example
Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example
Now a day the vaccination available is only for Hepatitis B, and no vaccination is available for Hepatitis C or HIV. This is the reason why all healthcare workers are required to have their Hepatitis B vaccination done prior to entering their healthcare professionals.
For Hepatitis C, the treatment is available, but no vaccination. The treatment has good results if the disease is diagnosed at a relatively earlier stage. If a person comes with an advanced stage of Hepatitis C, the treatment does not show many good outcomes.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) also does not have any vaccine available, thus this disease is also hazardous if once it occurs. (HSE, 2010). Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
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PROCEDURES INVOLVING SHARPS:
The needle stick injuries are most common during procedures like drawing a blood sample, giving an intravenous or intramuscular drug, or any other procedure which involves any needle or any other sharp object like hypodermic needles or scalpels etc.
Another common exposure is while recapping the used needles. It is now recommended at all medial setups to immediately dispose of the used needles into the approved sharps containers which break the needle and only the plastic container of the syringe is left behind. Although the gloves are used during all the medical procedures, yet the needles or scalpels are sharp enough to pierce the glove and then the skin. (HSE, 2010). Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
STUDY SHOWING THE INCIDENCE OF NEEDLESTICK INJURIES:
Recently a study was conducted by the Health Protection Agency (HPA), which collected the data across 150 reporting centers. This study was based on the incidence of occupational exposure to the Blood Borne Viruses (BBV’s) among the healthcare workers.
The results of this study showed the needle stick injuries the needle stick injuries to be the most common type of exposure to such viruses. Out of this 63 % were caused by the hollow bore needles. Out of these about 45% occurred among the nursing professionals and 37% among the medial professionals.
Only about 2% of cases were reported amongst the ancillary staff, but most of them were those resulting from the inappropriately discarded needles in the garbage bags. (HSE, 2010). Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
In the United States, more than 500,000 needle-stick injuries related to residential needle disposal are reported every year.
A needle stick injury in the community setting, usually arises from the accidental puncturing of the skin by a syringe needle left in places such as in parks, playgrounds, laneways or public toilets. Sometimes, when people are walking in these public areas they accidentally step on a needle left there by somebody else. When a person suffers a needle stick injury, there is usually some anxiety and distress. This is a natural response when thoughts of potential blood borne infections such as HIV, hepatitis B and C occur. However, the risk of catching a serious infection as a result of an accidental needle stick injury is very low.Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.This is because these viruses do not survive for long outside of the body. Most community needle stick injuries involve needles that have been discarded for some time.
The most commonly transmissible diseases of concern is the human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV). Hepatitis B: HBV is the most transmissible, with a risk of infection following exposure of around 6-30 percent. Hepatitis C: Infection from HCV following a needle-stick is around 1.8 percent and HIV risk of becoming infected with HIV is a mere 0.3 percent. Of course the chance
The hospital has the potential to be a dangerous place for health care practitioners. Among healthcare workers, nurses, interns, technicians, residents, and housekeeping staff face the greatest risks of exposure to various injuries (Shriyan, Roche, Annamma, 2012). Back injuries, allergies, radiation exposure, violence, and stress are but some of the potential injuries that healthcare workers face.
Chief amongst the potential injuries that nurses face are needlestick injuries. Needle stick injuries commonly occur during subcutaneous injections, during the drawing of blood samples, during intravenous cannulation, and as a result of repeatedly replacing a cap onto an already used needle (Goniewicz, 2012). Needlestick injuries represent a greater danger than simply an acute wound that must be healed. Needlestick injuries also present a vector for the transmission of various viral and bacterial diseases including hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and Human immunodeficiency virus, malaria, syphilis, tuberculosis, brucellosis, herpes virus, and diphtheria (Goniewicz, 2012). The exposure to patient blood and body fluids may prove very dangerous. Furthermore, aside from an acquired infection, these injuries may take a significant mental health toll on the healthcare worker. Acute anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder and other psychological disorders have also been found to occur with increasing incidence in subjects with these injuries (Naghavi, Shabestari, Alcolado, 2013).
It is estimated that more than fifty percent of nurses will experience at least one needlestick in injury over the course of their career (Rohde, et al, 2013). Furthermore, new and trainee nurses are particularly at risk of such types of injuries and are 1-2.6 times more likely to be injured (Yang, et al, 2013). Approximately thirty two percent of hospital workers report some sort of exposure to patient bodily fluids. Fifty two percent of surgical staff, twenty seven percent of student, and twenty percent of medical house staff report some sort of occupational exposure (Resnic & Noerdlinger, 1995). Interestingly, with increased training, surgical staff were more likely to have suffered an injury whereas medical staff occurrence of injuries decreased with higher levels of training (Resnic & Noerdlinger, 1995).Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.Trainee nurses seem particularly susceptible to needlestick injuries due to insufficient training, limited practical experience, and frequent use of needles for injections (Yao, et al, 2012).
Statement of the Problem
Needlestick injuries are common occurrences in the hospital environment and present a considerable risk for the nursing staff at a hospital. Aside from the immediate physical harm caused by an open wound a needlestick injury represents a vector for a wide variety of diseases and the potential to cause psychological problems for the victim. This study examines the causes and effects of needlestick injuries by asking the following questions:
– Why do needlestick injuries occur and in which groups are they most likely?Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
– What are the ramifications of a needlestick injury?
– What is process undertaken once a needlestick injury occurs?
– What are the systems in place to prevent such incidents from occurring in the first place?
Purpose of the study
The purpose of the study is to examine the occupational risks that exist for nursing staff in the care settings. Specifically, the study focuses on needlestick injuries, the consequences of a needle stick injury, the process hospital staff goes through once such an injury occurs, and finally the systems in place to prevent such injuries from occurring.
Definition of Terms
Nurse. A nurse is an autonomous, licensed individual with responsibility for patient care. A nurse has various responsibilities in looking after an ill patient. Amongst these responsibilities is the provision of medications through injections and the drawing of various types of blood tests. Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
Trainee Nurse. A trainee nurse is any person in the process of education or licensure who has not yet received a complete unrestricted license to practice their trade without supervision.
Occupational Hazard. An occupational hazard is a condition during employment which may result in illness or injury.
Needlestick injury. A needlestick injury is a type of injury caused by any unintended poking, stabbing, or other introduction of a needle or sharp object into the body of a person when it is not intended.
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Limitations of the Study
This study is limited by the following factors.
– It is only a review of the English speaking literature regarding the problem. As nursing is a universal profession, it is highly probable that these injuries occur throughout the world and there are reports of the entire process in unread foreign literature.
– It will focus on the nursing profession only. Many other people are also prone to such injuries, including physicians, support staff, cleaning staff, and even family caregivers who are expected to draw blood or inject medications in the patient (Berguer & Heller, 2005; Guerlain, Wang, Hugine, 2010). Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
Works Cited:
Berguer, R., Heller, P.J. (2005). Strategies for preventing sharps injuries in the operating
room. Surgical Clinics of North America, 85(6), 1299-1305.
Goniewicz, M., et al. (2012). Injuries caused by sharp instruments among healthcare
workers – international and Polish perspectives. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine, 19(3), 523-527.
Guerlain, S., Wang, L., Hugine, A. (2010). Intilliject’s novel epinephrine autoinjector:
sharps injury prevention validation and comparable analysis with EpiPen and Twinject. Annals of Allergy Asthma Immunology, 105(6), 480-484. doi: 10.1016/j.anai.2010.09.028.
Naghavi, S.H., Shabestari, O., Alcolado, J. (2013). Post-traumatic stress disorder in. Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
trainee doctors with previous needlestick injuries. Occupational Medicine (London), 63(4), 260-265. doi: 10.1093/occmed/kqt027
Phillips, E.K., Conaway, M.R., Jagger, J.C. (2012). Percutaneous injuries before and after
the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act. New England Journal of Medicine, 366(7), 670-671. doi: 10.1056/NEJMc1110979.
Resnic, F.S., Noerdlinger, M.A. (1995). Occupational exposure among medical
students and house staff at a New York City Medical Center. Archives of Internal Medicine, 155(1), 75-80.
Rhode, K.A., Dupler, A.E., Postma, J., Sanders, A. (2013) Minimizing nurses’ risks for
needlestick injuries in the hospital setting. Workplace Health Safety, 61(5), 197-202. doi: 10.3928/21650799-20130418-24.
Shriyan, A., Roche, R., Annamma. (2012). Incidence of occupational exposures in a
tertiary health care center. Indian Journal of Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 33(2), 91-97. doi: 10.4103/0253-7184.
Yang, Y.H., et al. (2013). Incidence of needlestick and other sharp object injuries in
newly graduated nurses. American Journal of Infection Control. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2012.12.012
Yao, W.X., et al. (2012). Occupational safety training and education for needlestick
injuries among nursing students in China: Intervention study. Nurse Education Today. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2012.02.004. Needle Stick Injuries – Research Paper Example.
