Are We Still in the Dark Ages of Sharps Safety?

And then there’s the behavioral aspect of getting HCWs to understand how to use safety devices — and actually deploying them correctly. According to 2004 Epi-Net data, of 1,111 records, 38 percent of the injuries caused by needles were by safety devices. The safety mechanism was not activated in 305 or 78.4 percent of 389 total incidents, and in 238 or 65.9 percent of 361 total incidents, the injury occurred before activation of the safety device.

“We don’t get a lot of feedback about inadequacies of systems or supplies,” McCormick says. “Some of the preventable injuries are due to worker error, e.g., failure to inactivate a device as soon as feasible.”

“The devices are there to provide safety, and if they are not used then accidents will happen,” Fernandes says. “Unfortunately, sometimes rules are not followed 100 percent until it hits someone personally with their health or in the pocketbook. In the latter, OSHA has provided enough of a financial incentive to follow their rules. Those who have gotten speeding tickets in the past are more likely to observe the speed limit in the future. If there is no one handing out tickets then everyone tends to speed, and safety is diminished.”

McCormick says that buy-in by key stakeholders in the hospital is important to the success of any sharps safety awareness efforts. “Administrative staff plays a very key role in developing a culture of safety,” she says. “They are doing well in terms of patient safety but employee safety doesn’t get the same attention. I think there still may be an attitude that some injuries are simply part of the job and individual circumstances surrounding the injury are not examined adequately. Employers need to firmly set the expectation that safety devices have been purchased specifically for worker safety and that all workers are expected to do their share in terms of use and proper disposal. We have come a long way and many safer procedures are now simply standard operating procedures.”