Sharps injury risk in jails
Staff infected by dirty needles in drug-ridden jails have won £734,000 in payouts in last 3 years. The settlements, including legal costs, were made to as few as nine people, […]
syringe disposal
GP surgeries forced to store clinical waste in toilets
Pulse is reporting that GP surgeries in Derbyshire are being forced to store clinical waste in toilets after missed collections. Multiple GP surgeries have had to keep clinical waste in their […]
No end in sight for Scotland’s clinical waste crisis
Cash-strapped NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC) is spending ever-increasing amounts of money on disposing of hazardous clinical waste, while a disposal firm awaits planning permission for a new incineration […]
Sharps and Overdose Awareness training
A valuable Sharps and Overdose Awareness training session coming up, Manchester on 22 July. And it’s free! About this Event What is a sharp and what injuries can they cause? The […]
Clinical waste from Scotland to be sent to Wales
Sevearl sources are reporting that clinical wastes from Scottish hospitals are being shipped to Wales for treatment. The BBC reports that under a new contract, “yellow bag” waste and sharps […]
Used needles ‘overflowing onto floor’ in public toilet
Secure sharps bins in public and other toilets have become rather common in the last 5-10 years, though there is still much indignation and complaint from the moral majority who […]
Confusion in Fenland – what do we do with our sharps bins?
As we previously reported, new rulings mean sharps boxes will not be able to be taken to GP surgeries. Fenland District Council will instead be responsible who say it will be […]
NHS pays compensation to 1,200 staff after needlestick
More than 1,200 NHS staff have won compensation after being injured by needles potentially infected with HIV or hepatitis over the past six years. Official figures reveal an “unacceptable” picture […]
Used needles found dumped in Cornish towns
A warning has gone out to parents after a used needles were found dumped in two Cornish towns. One was found on the path on Tower Road in Newquay on […]
Mum must pay to dispose of her 12-year-old’s diabetic needles
A Mum is reported to be “utterly shocked” after being told she will have to pay to dispose of her 12-year-old diabetic daughter’s needles, and quite rightly so. A council […]
Man died 20 years after prick from infected needle
A man with a learning disability who contracted Hepatitis B from a dirty needle while gardening died due to the virus twenty years later. Dermot Redmond (53) from Walkinstown Road […]
Discarded needles won’t “jump out and bite you”
In a comment that perhaps rates as the most arrogant and ill-advised comment ever made regarding sharps safety, health ‘officials’ are urging Londoners to become more educated about discarded needles […]
Pilfering from clinical wastes
A US nurse admitted in court pilfering from clinical wastes to obtain drugs apparently ‘to aid in suicide attempts at her home’, but denied using those drugs and/or the syringes […]
New machine cleans and recycles used syringes
A US news report highlights Sterilis, a new device that sterilizes and recycles used syringes. Manufacturing Vice President for Sterilis, Tony Batalha showed Western Mass News what the machine is all […]
NHS buys mobile needle exchange for addicts amid HIV ‘outbreak’
The NHS has bought a mobile needle exchange for heroin addicts to use in a bid to halt an “uncontained HIV outbreak” in Scotland’s largest city. It is estimated that […]
Devon nurse took used syringe from sharps bin – thought it was OK!
A staff nurse at North Devon District Hospital thought it was OK to take a used syringe out of a sharps bin and claimed she didn’t know that it was […]
Sharps waste dumped in Totnes
Sharps boxes containing used hypodermic needles are being found dumped in bushes around an area of a supermarket car park used by thousands of shoppers. Over the last few months, […]
Sheath removal for hypodermic needles – right or wrong?
It is now universal policy in the UK, Europe, US and in many other countries to dispose used needles WITHOUT removing the sheath, or if the needle is already exposed, […]
A little bit of knowledge….
A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing. And so it is when the public are fobbed off with headline statements regarding safety that address only one small part […]
Clinical waste management in the NHS
The NHS’s sprawling network creates a diverse and complex set of waste streams. How do hospitals manage their waste and what developments are helping fight the constant budgetary battle? The […]
Down on the farm – needlestick is a real risk
Within agricultural production a good share of livestock producers perform routine veterinary work themselves. This includes administering vaccinations or treatments for common disease or sickness. A result of performing this […]
Clinical waste disposal in India – how bad can they get?
CHANDIGARH: A task of unclogging drains belched out hundreds of used syringes at Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, on Saturday, indicating that something was wrong in the disposal […]
Shooting up: A warning for waste handlers
The Health Protection Agency have released a new Public Health England report, “Shooting Up, the annual report on infections among people who inject drugs (PWID) in the United Kingdom, has […]
FDA Proposes reclassification of Needle Destruction Devices
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday proposed reclassifying the needle destruction device, renamed as “sharps needle destruction device,” from a Class III device into Class II (special controls), […]
Adelaide mum petitions for secure sharps bin improvement
A mother whose daughter was cut by a used syringe when she put her hand on an open sharps deposit box says children remain at risk of contracting deadly diseases […]
How much do sharps injuries cost the NHS?
Healthcare workers are regularly faced with needlestick injuries (NSI) and while it might not be a standout issue, the financial implications across the NHS are damning. According to the NHS […]
Sterilis device in use
The photocopier-size device can sterilize and grind up medical (clinical) waste including syringes and sharps containers to produce nontoxic garbage that ‘doesn’t require incineration’ or ‘other special treatment’. Innovator Jeff […]
Needlestick prevention inventor wins big at convention
A needle that automatically caps itself after use has attracted interest from manufacturers to mass-produce them from less than NT$3 per unit. The medical device that automatically caps needles after use, […]
Comprehensive approach to managing sharps danger in Belfast
Belfast residents have become concerned over the increase in needles and drug paraphernalia being found in public places across the city. Not unusual, since most towns and cities face similar […]
US elementary school student pricks 14 others with needle
A San Francisco Bay Area school district advised the families of 14 elementary school students to take their children to doctors after another student pricked them with a needle, a […]