To the Editor—The Massachusetts Department of Public Health mandates that all Massachusetts hospitals maintain an active log to track sharps injuries due to the health risks related to such injuries. These logs are used to guide continuous quality improvement activities aimed at preventing sharps injuries. A review of sharps injuries at UMass Memorial Medical Center (UMMMC) in 2013 showed a see...

Background and Objectives: Exposure to contaminated needlesticks and sharp devices is an important occupational hazard among healthcare workers. The objective of this study was to gain further insight into prevalence and risk factors of needlestick and sharps injuries among healthcare workers. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 384 healthcare workers of two hospitals in N...

BACKGROUND Sharps injuries create a high volume of occupational health (OH) workload in the health care setting. The deadline for implementation of the European Sharps Directive was 11 May 2013. AIMS To compare the epidemiology of sharps injuries reported in a large Irish teaching hospital in 2008-10 with those reported between 1998 and 2000. METHODS We compared data from electronic and pap...

BACKGROUND Sharps injuries and the related risk of infections such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) represent one of the major occupational health risks for healthcare workers (HCWs). LITERATURE REVIEW An overview of available data on the incidence of sharps injuries and the related HBV, HCV and HIV infections and ensuing costs is prov...

BACKGROUND Patient-care workers are frequently exposed to sharps injuries, which can involve the risk of serious illness. Underreporting of these injuries can compromise prevention efforts. METHODS We linked survey responses of 1,572 non-physician patient-care workers with the Occupational Health Services (OHS) database at two academic hospitals. We determined whether survey respondents who s...

Sharps-related injuries carry the risk of serious blood borne infection. A systematic review was undertaken to consider the evidence related to safer sharps devices and their impact on needlestick injury reduction within the healthcare sector. The review sought to determine whether: n the use of safer sharps devices could reduce the incidence of sharps injury; n dedicated educational / training...

BACKGROUND Sharps injuries in health care personnel still represent a significant problem worldwide. Many studies show a reduction in sharps injuries following the introduction and use of different protection devices, but few studies focus on the role of training programmes in the prevention of such injuries. AIMS To analyse the influence of training programmes on sharps injuries in health ca...

BACKGROUND In 2013, new regulations for the prevention of sharps injuries were introduced in the UK. All health care employers are required to provide the safest possible working environment by preventing or controlling the risk of sharps injuries. AIMS To analyse data on significant occupational sharps injuries among health care workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland before the intro...

BACKGROUND Home healthcare is one of the fastest growing sectors in the United States. Percutaneous injuries from sharp medical devices (sharps) are a source of bloodborne pathogen infections among home healthcare workers and community members. Sharps use and disposal practices in the home are highly variable and there is no comprehensive analysis of the system of sharps procurement, use and di...