Reducing needlestick injuries: a review of a community service.

Abstract

Community nurses provide care to patients in a variety of settings; for example, health centres, community hospitals, patients' homes, and residential and nursing homes. Administering intramuscular (IM)injections to patients in the community is an everyday activity for many nurses in clinical practice. A great deal of problems related to being 'sharps safe' are common to both community nurses and hospital staff. There had been a reported six needlestick injuries (NSIs) from community clinics administering depot IM injections, which required a review. An audit of practice was undertaken in clinics administering depot injections. The audit was undertaken to monitor compliance in sharps management and investigated how community nurses were administering IM injections. The review highlighted a lack of resources, gaps in knowledge and training deficits. The infection prevention and control nurses worked hard to improve practices and procedures. After a year, there had been a significant reduction in NSIs.

• Authors: Ann-Marie Aziz
• Journal: British journal of nursing (Mark Allen Publishing) (Br J Nurs) 2012 Apr 26-May 9 Vol. 21 Issue 8 Pg. S4, S6, S8 passim ISSN: 0966-0461 [Print] England
• PMID: 22629591 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Topics

• Community Health Nursing (standards)
• Humans
• Infection Control (methods)
• Needlestick Injuries (prevention & control)
• Nursing Audit
• Nursing Staff (standards)
• Occupational Exposure (prevention & control)
• United Kingdom