Needle Stick Injuries and Post-Exposure Practices among Omani Nurses

Shama, Mona E.; Taman, Amr M.

doi:10.21608/jhiph.2005.170349

Needle Stick Injuries and Post-Exposure Practices among Omani Nurses

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Mona E. Shama ¹
Amr M. Taman ²

¹ Department of Health Education & Behavioral Sciences, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Egypt

² Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Egypt

10.21608/jhiph.2005.170349

Abstract

Nurses are at high risk for exposure to blood-borne pathogens via sharp injuries such as needle stich injuries.
This study aimed at studying the occurrence of needle stick injuries among Omani nurses and measures followed by nurses after exposure. To fulfill this aim, a total of 489 nurses involved in the direct day-to-day management of patients answered a questionnaire inquiring about occurrence of needle stick injuries and measures taken by the nurse after exposure.
The results revealed that 31.1% of the sample experienced at least one needle stick injury during the period of one year prior to the study. No significant relationship was found between the occurrence of needle stick injury and any of the nurses’ characteristic. Nurses working in welayat hospitals experienced significantly higher percentage of needle stick injuries than those working in regional hospitals [40.3% compared to 27.6%]. Nurses working in obstetric and gynecology departments experienced the highest percentage of needle stick injuries [46.3%] followed by those working in internal medicine wards [40.4%], whereas the lowest occurrence was among nurses working in renal dialysis units and surgical wards [12.5% and 12.0%, respectively]. Only 63.2% of needle stick injuries were notified and only 55.3% were reported.
It was concluded that needle stick injury represents an important hazard for Omani nurses. Effective educational programs for prevention of injuries and enhancing post-exposure preventive measures should be considered.

Keywords