Effective Factors on Needle Stick Injuries in Health Care Workers

Aims: Needle stick accidents are a serious health risk for blood-borneinfections among health care workers. This study was conducted to evaluatethe frequency of needle stick injuries in health care workers and its relatedfactors.Instrument & Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried on HCWs ofShahid Beheshti Hospital of Kashan City, Iran (270 individuals), fromSeptember 2013 to March 2014. Due to the low number of samples, all thosewho had the experience of needle stick injuries and confirmed to participatewere entered to the study. A researcher-made questionnaire with 20 questionswas used. Data were analyzed by SPSS 16 software using descriptive statistics.Findings: The most injuries of needle sticks (75.2%) were superficial and themost common device for NSIs was the needle of syringe (51.8%). Bloodsampling was the most common activity during NSIs (28.4%). The mostcommon contamination was blood and its products (69.5%). 61 participants(43.3%) used gloves during NSIs. 118 participants (83.7%) were vaccinatedcompletely against hepatitis B, and 19 participants (13.5%) had incompleteHBV vaccination. 4 participants (2.8%) had no history of vaccination againsthepatitis B.Conclusion: Needle stick injuries among health care workers of KashanHospital are relatively high.

Keywords:

Needlestick Injuries [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/68016602] , Health Personnel [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/68006282] , Nurses [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/68009726]