Prevalence and response to needle stick injuries among health care workers

Introduction: A needle stick injury is a serious occupational health hazard in health care settings. Health care workers are at risk of blood borne diseases and the psychological consequences of these injuries. These injuries are a major source of infections with blood-borne diseases like Hepatitis B Virus, Hepatitis C Virus and Human Immunodeficiency Virus. The risk of transmission of this infection after exposure to percutaneous injuries with infected blood is 2–40% for HBV, 2.7–10% for HCV, and 0.3% for HIV. Additionally, studies show an influence on the mental health of the injured HCWs. Anxiety, depression, and worry about being infected or transmitting the infection to their family affected their quality of life. Materials and Methods: Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: A tertiary care hospital in Panipat. Participants: 105 resident doctors, and consultants. Results: A large percentage (32.4%) of HCWs reported having had one or more NSIs in their career.43.8% of males and 56.2 females were affected .More than half (29.8%) ascribed fatigue, work load as a cause in their injury. Most of the injuries (35.2%) occurred during recapping. In addition, heavy work load (44%), caused the highest rate of injuries, followed by inattention and hasty work (25.8%). Regarding post-exposure actions of the 39% respondents first washed the injury site with soap and water while 8.6% just squeezed the blood. Only 15% of the HCWs took post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) against HIV/AIDS after their injury. Conclusions: Avoidable practices like recapping of needles were contributing to the injuries. Prevention of NSI is an integral part of prevention programs in the work place, and training of HCWs regarding safety practices indispensably needs to be an ongoing activity at a hospital.