Sharps or needlestick injury carries with it, in some circumstances, a predictable risk of bloodborne virus infection. The statistics, from which risk can be calculated, are well known and relate to the “average” used […]
Sharps injury is depressingly common but should be preventable. Less easy to prevent is a blood splash that can unexpectedly contaminate the face and eyes – eye in particular are […]
Once again, this week (22nd to 28th April 2013) is the highlight of the Marine Conservation Society’s fight against marine litter with the Big Beach Clean-up. Over 110 beaches across the […]
In a landmark case involving reversal of a no liability finding for needlestick injury that occurred in a Queensland holiday apartment the circumstances of injury, and the legal wrangles, send shivers […]
The press are today full of comment about hospital hotels, a new – at least new to the UK – initiative to use hotels as a half-way house for patients […]
Yahoo Answers is not something that I recommend, though no doubt it has its uses and many people find it particularly useful. When I’m teaching, I instruct students in no […]
Some time has passed since this paper by Green and Griffiths was published. Unsurprisingly, the professional journals and magazines, and the trades union RCN are up in arms about the impact […]
Today, the press are getting excited about proposals for a safe injection facility – a shooting gallery – for Brighton. This would provide a safe environment for IV drug users, where […]
Pupils of the Mandal Praja Parishad primary school at Achayyapeta have found some new “toys” to play with. During the recess and after school , the boys and girls run to the […]
I am often asked how much compensation might be expected after a sharps injury, and this is one of the common search terms used when visiting the Clinical Waste Discussion […]
The psychiatric distress caused by having a ‘sharps’ injury is consistent with being in a car crash, a study has revealed. Published in the journal Occupational Medicine, the study explored […]
Dozens of used medical needles scattered along a Long Beach street next to a youth handball court were removed Sunday by a Nassau hazardous-materials team. The syringes were found by […]
A second Lanarkshire hospital has been slammed over stained mattresses and the unsafe use of sharps disposal bins. Monklands Hospital in Airdrie was the subject of an unannounced inspection by the […]
Children biking around their Long Beach, N.Y., neighbourhood discovered piles of used medical syringes Sunday, local news agency News12 reported. One of the children, age 12, told his parents, who […]
As the archive files of the Clinical Waste Discussion Forum will attest, several years before the start of the move toward introduction of engineered safety sharps I took a sceptical […]
The Health and Safety Executive have published “Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013 Guidance for employers and employees “This information sheet is for healthcare employers and employees. […]
“Two children, aged three and four when they suffered “needlestick” injuries while playing in a rubbish-strewn park, have each lost €38,000 damages claims against a local authority. “Judge Matthew Deery […]
NHS Supply Chain is running 8 regional events across the UK, 7 events for NHS staff and one event non-NHS staff. These days are being split into two, with the […]
Through we are continually criticising aspects of the management of sharps in the community, from self-administered medications to the management of drug litter, rest assured that compared to most areas of […]
This interesting patented technology is apparently now available for licensing worldwide to convert medical waste into fuel. Pelleted fuel can be used in cement kilns and other large users of industrial […]
Even a relatively minor – none can be described as trivial – sharps injury or blood or bloodstained body fluid exposure can result in short-term or longer-lasting psychological harm. This […]
A mother opened a loaf of bread bought at a Tesco store to make a sandwich for her 10-year-old – only to discover it contained a blood-covered needle used by a […]
The Department of Health has issued an Estates and Facilities Alert (ref EFA/2013/001) concerning ‘Sharps and sharps containers transported in staff vehicles‘. It follows exposed or inadequately protected sharps left […]
It’s probably inevitable, and in some instances visually apparent, that a significant proportion of police officers frequent the gym and abuse steroids. Unlike the Chief Constable, I cannot be sure quite […]
Sharps injury is a not uncommon problem for domestic waste handlers, who face injury from metal wood, plastic and glass. Most serious is a sharps injury involving a used needle, but […]
Safety engineered needles – do the help? It’s a straightforward question and the answer will, for most people, be an unequivocal yes. Of course, we *hope* that the answer is […]
In a surprisingly practical note to the The European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy: Science and Practice (EJHP) a UK pharmacist discusses the many situations occurring outside the immediate clinical environment where […]
An interesting magnetic needle retriever developed by Advanced Medical Innovations. Though intended to pick dropped needles and scalpel blades from the floor of the operating theatre, I wonder is a […]
Basildon Hospital Trust have failed miserably to separate clinical from domestic-type refuse resulting in what is apparently widespread contamination of a Veolia site. Now, hospital porters who volunteered for the […]
Hematology/Oncology Associates PC, a medical service provider in Newton, has been cited by the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration for an alleged willful and an alleged serious […]