How safe are safety needles?
The Clinical Waste Discussion Forum has previously considered the risks to ancillary workers and waste handlers of sharps carelessly discarded in clinical waste sacks or laundry, or spilled from inadequately sealed […]
injury
Occupational syphilis
Sounding more like a troublesome consequence of prostitution, ‘occupational syphilis’ has been recorded in a recent report from the US. Previous reports have described many cases of occupational syphilis in […]
Safer needles work!
Safer needles that are mandated by EU Directive 2010/32/EU really make a difference. Sharps injuries are reduced, though there is now anecdotal evidence that the implementation of a new safety engineered needle […]
HSE evaluation of the efficacy of safer sharps devices
In what is claimed to be a systematic review and evaluation of the efficacy of ‘safer sharps devices’, HSE have recently published this work from HSL. Last updated: Saturday, February 25, 2012
Gloves come in pairs. Wear both of them!
“A worker at Dunedin’s recycling plant is facing a nervous six-month wait for blood test results after being pricked by a discarded syringe. “The incident happened as the woman worked at […]
Seroprevalence of Hepatitis B and C viruses among medical waste handlers
Belay Anagaw, Yitayal Shiferaw, Berhanu Anagaw, Yeshambel Belyhun, Woldearegay Erku, Fantahun Biadgelegn, Beyene Moges, Agersew Alemu, Feleke Moges & Andargachew Mulu. Seroprevalence of Hepatitis B and C viruses among medical […]
Hospital microbiologists face measures over outbreak
For many years now hospital patients had suffered an unacceptably high incidence of serious, sometimes fatal, hospital- or healthcare-associated infections. Only now have these been brought under some degree of […]
Servicing sharps disposal bins
Sharps bins had previously been found only in healthcare premises but are now ubiquitous. Many gymnasia and sports stadiums now place a sharps bin in the male toilets – though vehemently deny any suggestion […]
The cost of sharps injury
The cost of a sharps injury can be great – at worst, transmission of a life-ending viral infection. However, it is important to look more generally at the cost of […]
Sharps injury prevention for hospital workers
A potentially interesting paper published recently in the International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics reports the incidence of sharps injuries in hospital staff in Turkey. Though the journal is […]
Safe sharps disposal, or not?
“Two bin men have been seriously injured by broken glass discarded in the rubbish. “One suffered a one-and-a-half inch gash to his arm from a broken bottle sticking out of […]
Needle-free vaccinations
The use of syringes for vaccination is set to decline, affecting also the volume of sharps waste as work continues on alternate delivery systems for common vaccines. Some oral products […]
Medical waste contaminating blue bins
Thurrock council uses blue bins for domestic recyclacbles. They have been complaining that “some residents are costing it money buy throwing medical waste in their blue bins” – never mind […]
Dentist in trouble for sharps disposal violation
A Massachusetts dentist is being sued by the U.S. Department of Labor for allegedly firing an employee for raising concerns about needlestick hazards and filing a health hazard complaint with […]
Disposal-related sharps injuries
“Almost 200 staff suffered injuries from contaminated needles or sharp medical instruments at the region’s main hospitals in just 12 months. “Hull And East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust said 197 […]
Adrenaline ‘pens’
Adrenaline pens carried by those who are prone to potentially devastating anaphylactic (allergic) reactions are becoming increasingly common. Several incidents have been reported, of carelessly discarded or lost pens, and […]
Motel needlestick horror
A Texas woman was treated at Cumberland Medical Center’s emergency room after lying down in bed and then being stuck in the hand by a used syringe, according to police […]
HSE sharps injury advice updated
The HSE sharps injury advice page has recently been updated. http://www.hse.gov.uk/healthservices/needlesticks/index.htm Last updated: Saturday, August 13, 2011
€10,000 for needle ‘scare’
A toddler who may have suffered a needlestick injury while playing in a medical centre, has been awarded €10,000. In September 2007, 18-month-old Callum Wynne and his brother had been in the […]
Free webinar on sharps safety in non-hospital settings
The International Healthcare Worker Safety Center is sponsoring a free webinar on a much overlooked topic: “Achieving Sharps Safety Compliance in Non-Hospital Healthcare Settings.” Last updated: Sunday, October 10, 2021
Are safety sharp devices really safe?
A couple of years ago, when the talk about the potential of safety sharp devices in reducing sharps injuries I had a wager with a good friend, that the incidence […]
Syringe horror for Aussie gardener
Yet another regional news report, this time from Australia’s Sunshine Coast, of a sharps injury from a needle discarded into undergrowth garden borders of a holiday complex and lost in […]
BBV transmission
The estimated rate of BBV transmission after sharps injury is widely publicised. For Hepatitis B Virus infections the risk is around 30%, for Hepatitis C 3% and for HIV infections around 0.3% risk. […]
Removing needles from prisons
Prison must be a terrible place to be, though some recidivists seem to have an affection for life inside. By all accounts, violence and drug abuse are common and at […]
Sharps-related infections
We have previously discussed the wide diversity of infections that can be transmitted by sharps or needlestick injury. Last updated: Sunday, October 13, 2019
Needles discarded into recycling bins
Even a single discarded needle turning up in a recycling bin or found on a picking line can bring things to a shuddering halt. Yet more seriously, it can cause […]
Penalty for dumping used needle “grossly inadequate”
Dumping used needles, in playgrounds, parks, alleyways or wherever puts lives at risk, generates fear among communities and lowers property values. In every way, it is unacceptable behavior. Last updated: […]
Needlestick infections
There is widespread misconception that sharps or needlestick infections are associated only with the bloodborne virus Hepatitis B and HIV, and that since no such infections have been recorded among waste […]
Needle risk hidden in snow, sand, grass
As we in the UK continue to suffer with bad weather, it is reported that a man from Manly, Australia, will have to wait six months to learn if he has contracted […]
Never put a needle in a recycling bin!
Recycle for Norfolk have published an interesting news item with this title, emploring poeople to keep used needles out of the recycling system. Last updated: Saturday, April 1, 2017