The Impact of U.S. Policies to Protect Healthcare Workers from Bloodborne Pathogens: The Critical Role of Safety-Engineered Devices

Details

• Personal Author:
  Gomaa, Ahmed ; Jagger J ; Kornblatt Phillips E ; Perry J
• Description:
  In the United States (U.S.), federal legislation requiring the use of safety-engineered sharp devices, along with an array of other protective measures, has played a critical role in reducing healthcare workers' (HCWs) risk of occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens over the last 20 years. We present the history of U.S. regulatory and legislative actions regarding occupational blood exposures, and review evidence of the impact of these actions. In one large network of U.S. hospitals using the Exposure Prevention Information Network (EPINet) sharps injury surveillance program, overall injury rates for hollow-bore needles declined by 34%, with a 51% decline for nurses. The U.S. experience demonstrates the effectiveness of safety-engineered devices in reducing sharps injuries, and the importance of national-level regulations (accompanied by active enforcement) in ensuring wide-scale availability and implementation of protective devices to decrease healthcare worker risk. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Blood Blood-Borne Pathogens Engineering Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Health Personnel Hematologic Diseases Needlestick Injuries Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Needlestick Injuries/Sharps Injuries Bloodborne-pathogens Bloodborne Pathogens Regulations Control-technology Engineering-controls Health-care-facilities Health-care-personnel Healthcare Worker Safety Legislation Needlestick-injuries Occupational Exposures Safety-engineered Sharp Devices Standards

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• ISSN:
  1876-0341
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5 ; Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  62-71
• Volume:
  1
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20036318
• Citation:
  J Infect Publ Health 2008 Oct; 1(2):62-71
• Contact Point Address:
  Jane Perry, International Healthcare Worker Safety Center, University of Virginia Health System, P.O. Box 800764, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Infection and Public Health
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d01d6f653d4d3e28eb457bda4c47bf03ba98a7b8b48422a71a88c28bc261e1ad3868d1f88a9fae1d461eabd0a5f559ae83491bd4d337561e34fafa69e8250577
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/187790/cdc_187790_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 430.54 KB ]