Encouraging Needle Safety Vigilance
For the past five years, the Needle Safety Advisory Committee has focused on a “needle-safe” environment for all employees and staff. Their efforts realized a 34 percent reduction in hollow bore needlestick exposures in the Nursing Department from 1998 to 2003. However, in calendar year 2004, there was an increase in hollow bore injuries among nurses.
The majority of the hollow bore injuries involved syringes and eighty-two percent of these injuries were deemed preventable.
Using safe practice could prevent the majority of the needlestick injuries among nurses. “Many employees who have sustained a needlestick have stated that they were distracted in some way at the time of the exposure,” said Occupational Health Services' Katherine Twitchell, RN, MS, who chairs the Needle Safety Advisory Committee. Twitchell explained that focusing on the task at hand and being aware of the sharps at all times can help in prevention.
To assist prevention further, the Needle Safety Advisory Committee, in conjunction with BWH nurse educators, have developed a nursing module on the needle safety products for nursing orientation. This program will be used for annual needle safety nursing competency as well. In addition, the BWH Needle Safety website has excellent educational posters on most of the safety devices that can be downloaded and used for educational purposes. The website can be easily found in Pike Notes under “Quick Links.” http://www.bwhpikenotes.org/GeneralClinicalResources/NeedleSafety
Any questions or concerns on needle safety products can be directed to the needle safety email bwhneedlesafety@partners.org or Twitchell.