The Safe Use Of Sharps And Needlestick Among Nurses Working In Surgical Clinics, Turkey

Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the attitude of nurses working in surgical clinics regarding the safe use of sharps and needlestick.
Materials and Methods: This descriptive study was conducted between December 2013 and February 2014 simultaneously in the surgical clinics of research hospitals located in three cities. The sample group consisted of 360 nurses who agreed to participate in the study and were not on sick leave or off duty (participation rate was 88.2%).
Results: The mean scores obtained by nurses from scale of medical staff’s attitude regarding the safe use of sharps and needlestick were 108.64±11.30. It was also determined that 46.1% of the nurses got injured for 1-5 time(s) a year; 40.6% of them got injured with injector needles, 32.5% got injured with broken ampoule pieces, 54.4% were vaccinated against hepatitis and tetanus and 63.0% had knowledge about the activities of the infection control committee.
Conclusions: When it is considered that they are exposed to a high level of sharp and needlestick injuries, it can be recommended to conduct serologic tests of the personnel routinely, turn the submittal of annual assessment reports into an institutional policy and offer the personnel through in-service training programs periodically regarding this subject.