Muhammad Faheem Afzal, Zainab Ayub, Muhammad Naeem Afzal, Asif Hanif.
Needlestick Injuries among Healthcare Workers.
J Sharif Med Dent Coll Jan ;5(1):20-3.

Objective: To determine the frequency and contributory factors of needlestick injuries (NSI) among the healthcare workers (HCWs) in two tertiary healthcare centers of Punjab, Pakistan. Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in the Mayo Hospital, Lahore and Allama Iqbal Memorial Teaching Hospital, Sialkot from January to June 2018. Ethical approval was taken from the institutional review board of the institution. A total of 225 HCWs (doctors, charge nurses, nursing students and waste disposal workers) were included after taking their informed consent. A structured questionnaire for needlestick injury was used. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 was used to analyze the data. Results: Out of 225 HCWs, 90(40%) doctors, 83(36.9%) charge nurses, 17(7.6%) nursing students and 35(15.6%) waste disposal workers consented to participate in the study. Out of them, 112(49.8%) were trained for NSI prevention. However, 161(71.6%) had suffered from NSI which was statistically significant (p-value<0.001) in non-doctors, less experienced and less educated HCWs. Working in the operation theatre setting was a contributory factor in the majority (55%) of cases followed by maintaining intravenous line (29%) and drawing blood samples (27%). Conclusion: The frequency of NSIs among HCWs was found to be high (71.6%). Maintaining intravenous line, drawing blood samples and working in the operation theatre setting were major contributory factors for NSis among HCWs. Lack of awareness regarding immediate action following NSI was observed in 26% ofHCWs. Keywords: Needlestick injury. Contributory factors. Healthcare workers

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