Needlestick injuries are a serious risk to our colleagues. Blood-borne infections such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV can be passed onto colleagues who have been injured.
Injuries are much more likely to occur when the health and safety processes aren't followed - such as not using the needle shield device on needles, or disposing of needles incorrectly. Please only use sharps bins to dispose of needles. These bins have recently had a change in the way the temporary closure is opened and closed. Please read the below document to update yourself on these changes.
Ward Manager, Sarah Bray, recently received a needlestick injury and now faces a six month wait before knowing if the needle she was exposed to carried anything infectious. Sarah has shared her story to help colleagues understand how important it is to dispose and handle needles correctly.
"I noticed that a yellow clinical waste box on the ward hadn't been removed by the porters because it had been so overfilled it was broken and unable to be sealed properly. I had gloves and an apron on and started to empty the waste from this box into a new unbroken clinical waste box.
"As I reached down, I felt a sharp stab in my palm. I looked and there was blood through the glove. I knew immediately it was a needlestick injury.
"My first feeling was frustration - what had just happened could have been avoided completely had the needle been disposed of properly into the sharps bin. The needle which injured me did have a needle shield, but this hadn't been used. So two processes designed to keep people safe had been missed.
"I had to go for blood tests that same day in A&E then wait for my result. When I got home I found myself going over what had happened repeatedly. I received my results shortly after, which highlighted that I would need a booster for hepatitis. I won't know the full results until September. It does make me worry.
"I would urge colleagues to please use the plastic sharps bin for needles, not the cardboard clinical waste box. I'd also ask that the boxes not be overfilled so that they can be fastened correctly to prevent any other nurse, doctor, porter or clinical professional, from getting a needlestick injury and the subsequent worry which comes with it."
Four other needles were also found in the clinical waste box that Sarah had been trying to empty.
Ways to prevent sharps injuries
Clinical colleagues should follow the Prevention and Management of Clinical Sharps Injuries and Exposure to Blood and High-Risk Body Fluids Policy. Following these protocols is essential to protecting one another. If you or your team require a refresher or additional training, please contact your team lead or health and safety representative.
Please also be aware of patients who self-administer medication using needles. Making a sharps bin available at the bedside is the safest option.
A single moment of carelessness in a ward or clinical setting can lead to unnecessary stress, harm, and the need for blood tests, leaving others to face prolonged uncertainty after a needlestick injury.