One-quarter of percutaneous injuries happen in the operating room and the most common of all of those is needlestick. Needlestick is an accidental puncture of the skin with an unsterilized needle, having been used with a patient, often exposing healthcare workers to blood-borne diseases, such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV).
The Needlestick Safety And Prevention Act was brought into law in 2000 to reduce or eliminate needlestick injuries in the healthcare industry. With it brought many regulations, including aiming to reduce the unnecessary use of needles, which means greater scrutiny of when needles need to be used will play a huge factor in reducing needlestick injuries. Can the procedure be completed using different equipment? Does the procedure need to be completed?
Evidence has suggested that needlestick injuries often occur when operating rooms are too busy, or too rushed. More efficient scheduling can be employed to ensure that there aren’t too many people in the operating room at any one time, it will also help to ensure that everything is happening in an efficient and timely manner, to reduce stress and prevent rushing. More haste, less speed.
What has been done to make medical devices safer?
Many sharps devices have been designed to automatically recap themselves, meaning that it doesn’t need to be done manually, which is one of the most common ways of sustaining a needlestick injury. Needlestick safety gloves are another great way of preventing needlestick injury. There are many other instruments such as needleless connectors, which mean you can access an IV line without needles at all.
To learn more about needlestick safety devices available today, Schedule a consultation with Sharp Fluidics.
