NAPPSI Supports "Project Prevent"

The National Alliance for the Primary Prevention of Sharps Injuries (NAPPSI) is reaching beyond its borders to help protect healthcare workers around the globe. In South Africa, a country with an HIV population topping 20 percent, both patients and healthcare workers are at extreme risk from sharps injuries. Needlestick safety is a vital necessity. NAPPSI has become aware of Project Prevent: an initiative of the Afrox Healthcare group of hospitals (representing 30 percent of the hospital beds in South Africa) that is aimed at improving safety for South African healthcare workers. The main objective is to significantly reduce the incidence of needlestick injuries and other sharps related injuries. The project aims at involving all persons delivering a healthcare service to a patient. The ultimate objective would be to reduce risk, improve safety and reduce costs without compromising the quality of healthcare delivered to the patient. The project has recently been launched in each hospital and has begun with a series of presentations on a regional basis. The project extends down to the individual ward level where nurses are encouraged to do poster presentations on what activities they have implemented and what results were achieved.