Needle Stick Injuries and Health Workers: A Preventable Menace

Sir, Accidental needle stick and sharp object injuries carry major risk factors for blood-borne infections amongst health workers.[1,2] The blood-borne infections that are mostly contracted through occupational hazards are Hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).[3] The risk of transmission of these diseases following percutaneous exposure among healthcare worker is high, with HBV at 37%, HCV at 39% and HIV at 4.4%.[3] Therefore, there is need for health workers to adhere to universal safety precautions in order to avoid injury from needles and other sharp instruments that have been exposed to body fluids or blood products. It is estimated that about 2 million needle stick injuries occur annually among health workers resulting in HBV, HCV, and HIV infections.[3,4] The incidence of needle stick and sharp object injuries varies among health workers globally, though believed to be underreported,[1,5] the percentage of health workers reporting these injuries in some recent studies ranged between 19% and 38%.[2,6-8] Among medical and nursing students who are also at a higher risk of blood-borne infection from unsafe practices related to needles and sharps, 11-33% reported injuries with sharp instruments while performing clinical duties,[9-11] and very few of them were aware of how sharps injuries are managed.[10-11]