Bullying – not the way to manage sharps injury
Twice in the last 10 days I have had calls from individuals concerned about sharps injury. One, a waste handler working at a domestic waste recycling operation, was concerned that he […]
injury
Improving clinical waste disposal practice
How do we improve clinical waste disposal practice? The answer to this question is not so easy. There is the hugely bloated HTM 07-01 that seeks to instruct but not inform, […]
Hypodermic needle used as a weapon
Several times previously we have on the Clinical Waste Discussion Forum reported about those who have used hypodermic needles as a weapon, either as a threat of injury or by […]
Mum’s horror over needle on beach
“A furious mum has sounded a warning after her little boy came within inches of picking up a used needle on a South Tyneside beach. “Two-year-old Lucas Bain had no […]
The Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013
Consultation on proposed Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013 began on 8 August 2012. Although there is technically nothing new in these regulations they do provide codification […]
Needle exchange in prison
In Australia, the prison system has introduced needle exchange schemes to eliminate, as far as possible, the hazards to health of needle sharing among the prison population. Rates of Hepatitis […]
The statistics of fatal accident prevention
A recent announcement from HSE records nine deaths involving the UK waste and recycling industry since June 15, 2012. That is an appalling statistic, and HSE are sending “warnings” to the […]
Needlestick emergency treatment
Many employers in the waste sector, and many Local Authorities, provide some key rules or action points for use in the event of a sharps (needlestick) injury. Repeatedly, the need to allow […]
Another community sharps hazard?
The recent trend – is is a craze? – for tanning salons that results in young women, and many others who are old enough to know better, turning into something the […]
Safety sharps – are you ready?
All corners of the healthcare sector should be ready for the introduction of safety sharps, as mandated under Council Directive 2010/32/EU. Indeed, we might hope that as many as possible, if not all, […]
Glove use – getting it right
News today of a Manchester fireman has been handed a £5,000 payout after injuring himself putting on gloves at work! Bosses at Greater Manchester Fire Service (GMFS) accepted the glove […]
HSE issues autoclave guidance
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published guidance on the safe use of industrial autoclaves, which can be used to treat waste. The guidance ‘Safety requirements for autoclaves’, addresses […]
Clinical waste disposal on the Palestinian West Bank
Last updated: Thursday, August 9, 2012
Thug stabs woman in neck with hypodermic needle
Attacks with a hypodermic needle continue to occur though are fortunately infrequent. The latest recorded attack, on an unfortunate lady who innocently answered her front door to be stuck in the neck […]
Dumpster kids earn 50p per kilo scavenging hospital waste
A few minutes away from the main Peshawar hospitals, children rummage through trash, collecting used syringes, sharp blades and blood bags. These children are gathering medical waste from garbage dumps […]
South coast bin men face needles in black sacks
Two binmen from West Sussex are facing a risk of infection and months of blood tests after being accidentally pricked by hypodermic needles. The needles had been left incorrectly in […]
Man steps on needle in Bournemouth Hospital car park
In an horrific twist on the now all-too-common tale of sharps injury to a member of the public coming into contact with a discarded needle, usually discarded drug litter, a Bournemouth […]
Temporary walkways for sharps contaminated land
A new device, or perhaps just a new application, of temporary walkway matting has been announced by Timbermat Ltd. Proposed as a mat to allow workers safe access to sharps-contaminated land […]
HSE Consultation on proposals to implement the 2010 Sharps in Healthcare Directive
Far better late than never, HSE is proposing consultation on proposals to implement the 2010 Sharps in Healthcare Directive. Late because the implementation date will soon be upon us and […]
Waste bosses fear safety fees costs
There is much chatter, in MRW CIWM and elsewhere, about concern of the plan by HSE to recover inspection costs from companies that break health and safety rules, fearing that this could lead […]
What are sharps?
Needlestick injuries may carry devastating consequences, even is seroconversion does not occur. Needle-related injury is the first and most obvious concern though latterly the term ‘sharps injury’ has been introduced to widen […]
Hiring temporary staff (clinical waste)
The current vacancy for a part-time clinical waste handler/roundsman in west London raises two interesting questions. The advertisement specifies: “In order to be considered for this role it is essential you have been inoculated […]
Schoolboy arrested after stabing classmates with used needle
A 14-year-old schoolboy has been arrested after stabbing 26 classmates in the head and neck with a used needle in frenzied break time attack. It is understood he was taking part in a bizarre […]
Bournemouth toddler suffers sharps injury in local park
The mother of a toddler who rolled onto a drug addict’s needle in a park is facing an agonising wait to see if her daughter has caught HIV. Two-year-old Siann […]
Government dragging its heels over needlestick horror – Unison
“Unison, the UK’s largest union, today called on the Government to end the horror caused to NHS nurses, midwives, healthcare assistants and other health workers by sharps injuries. According to […]
Offering solutions, solving problems…Not!
Waste Management World reports that cleansing bosses in Exeter are appealing to people not to put hypodermic needles into their recycling boxes. “In one week alone, 113 needles were found in […]
US community sharps incidents
Calrecycle have reported a collection of sharps-related incidents reported in the news: Boy, 7, pricks himself with a syringe he found on an Oakland play yard Beach Closed After Hypodermic Needles […]
Claim for sharps injury tops $600,000 AS
Sharps injury claims are increasing in frequency of reported injuries increase and the legal professions start to see these actions as profitable. Average payouts to claimants have generally been low, […]
Comprehensive survey of sharps injury: Massachusetts
Colleagues in Massachusetts deserve commendation for their great diligence in collating detailed statistics on the incidence and circumstances of sharps injury among healthcare workers in that State. The level of […]
HIV from sharps injury
It is becoming increasingly common to downplay or overlook completely the possibility of bloodborne virus infection after sharps injury or other blood or bloodstained body fluid exposure. The low incidence of […]