Risk of Sharps Injuries Among Home Care Aides: Results of the Safe Home Care Survey

Details

• Personal Author:
  Brouillette NM ; Davis, Letitia ; Galligan CJ ; Gore RJ ; Kriebel D ; Laramie AK ; Markkanen PK ; Quinn, Margaret M. ; Sama SR
• Description:
  Objectives: Home care (HC) aides constitute an essential, rapidly growing workforce. Technology advances are enabling complex medical care at home, including procedures requiring the percutaneous use of sharp medical devices, also known as sharps. Objectives were to quantify risks of sharps injuries (SI) in a large HC aide population, compare risks between major occupational groups, and evaluate SI risk factors. Methods: A questionnaire survey was administered to aides hired by HC agencies and directly by clients. One thousand one hundred seventy-eight aides completed questions about SI and potential risk factors occurring in the 12 months before the survey. SI rates were calculated and Poisson regression models identified risk factors. Results: Aides had a 2% annual risk of experiencing at least 1 SI (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-2.6). Client-hired aides, men, and immigrants had a higher risk than their counterparts. Risk factors among all HC aides included helping a client use a sharp device (rate ratio [RR], 5.62; 95% CI, 2.75-11.50), observing used sharps lying around the home (RR, 2.68; 95% CI, 1.27-5.67), and caring for physically aggressive clients (RR, 2.82; 95% CI, 1.36-5.85). Conclusions: HC aides experience serious risks of SI. Preventive interventions are needed, including safety training for clients and their families, as well as aides. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Blood Blood-Borne Pathogens Health Personnel Hematologic Diseases Home Care Services Needlestick Injuries Occupational Health Safety Staff Development Surveys And Questionnaires Workplace

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• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Needlesticks Bloodborne Pathogens Health Care Workers Home Health Care Injury Prevention Needlestick Injuries Nurses Questionnaires Sharps Training Work Environment

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• ISSN:
  0196-6553
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant ; Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  377-383
• Volume:
  45
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052290
• Citation:
  Am J Infect Control 2017 Apr; 45(4):377-383
• Contact Point Address:
  Margaret M. Quinn, ScD, College of Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell, 1 University Ave, Lowell, MA 01854
• Email:
  Margaret_Quinn@uml.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Performing Organization:
  University of Massachusetts - Lowell
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20040901
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Infection Control
• End Date:
  20230831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a225dd0a1ef81a7570da8a0d52b0f805bb399fc30cb09a8b938d57b1f233865a4d7015633e9236bf8d5e7474f892b36e532a7b34111dde5cdfeb821d378d881f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/211840/cdc_211840_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 193.96 KB ]