ONLINE FIRST: Needlestick injuries

Impact of ‘safer sharps’ on needlestick incidents

Summary:

Helen L Kroening, Tracy Bennett and Prosenjit Giri present the findings of an observational study examining the impact of safety-engineered sharps devices on the incidence of needlestick injuries across an NHS trust.

The exposure of healthcare workers to blood and body fluids of patients is a recognised occupational hazard. In addition to a risk of infection with bloodborne viruses, such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C and human immunodeficiency virus, healthcare workers can experience significant psychological impact in the form of fear, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress, as well as anger, a feeling of humiliation and loss of self-confidence1. Such incidents are also associated with …

 

Dr Helen L Kroening is a specialty registrar in occupational medicine at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Occupational Health Service (SOHS).

Tracy Bennett is clinical nurse manager at SOHS.

Dr Prosenjit Giri is a consultant in occupational health at SOHS.

Author: Kroening HL, Bennett T, Giri P

Tags bbv - bloodborne viruses health and safety needlestick sharps

Occupational Health at Work August/September 2025 (vol. 22/2) pp00

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