Sharps Injuries Among Medical Trainees: Massachusetts Sharps Injury Surveillance System Data, 2002–2009

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Massachusetts. Department of Public Health
• Description:
  A total of 8,268 sharps injuries among physicians working in Massachusetts hospitals were reported for the surveillance period Jan 1, 2002 to Dec 31, 2009 (an average of 1,034 injuries per year). Medical trainees accounted for more than half of all sharps injuries to physicians (60%, 4,972). There was a declining trend over the academic year in the frequency of injuries to trainees. The greatest frequency was observed during the first quarter of the academic year (July - September). Most medical trainees were injured by suture needles (44%), followed by hypodermic needles & syringes (22%), scalpel blades (10%) and other hollow bore needles (9%). Suturing procedures accounted for the greatest percentage of injuries to medical trainees (43%). Injection accounted for 16% of the injuries to medical trainees. In comparison to attending physicians, medical trainees sustained proportionately: 1) Fewer sharps injuries in the operating and procedure rooms (57% vs. 69%). 2) More sharps injuries in the intensive care unit (11% vs. 4%) and inpatient units (11% vs. 6%). 3) More sharps injuries associated with blood procedures that occurred after use and before disposal of the device (42% vs. 27%). 4) More sharps injuries associated with recapping the needles after injections (14% vs. 12%). After excluding injuries due to suture needles, devices for which few alternatives with sharps injury protection features are available, 65% of the remaining injuries to medical trainees involved devices lacking sharps injury prevention features, predominantly hypodermic needles/syringes (609). Sharps injury rate was higher among medical trainees (84 injuries per 1,000 trainees FTEs) than that of attending physicians (65 injuries per 1,000 attending FTEs). [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Epidemiology Health Personnel Needlestick Injuries Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Health Care Workers Injury Prevention Medical Personnel Needlestick Injuries Occupational Exposure Physicians Sharps Surveillance
• Publisher:
  Massachusetts Department of Public Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Report
• 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:
  1-11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20061320
• Citation:
  Boston, MA: Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 2011 May; :1-11
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• Performing Organization:
  Massachusetts State Department of Public Health - Boston
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Sharps injuries among medical trainees: Massachusetts Sharps Injury Surveillance System data, 2002-2009
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7ef38338ea9d3e9733e2b7c1b39ac1c94a8dc8d86ad3ca5d04d18ea2d2f88e74150bc5c378c380a1cc4ce62c428f39eea76690b75f2e0445eefe4b76a67b02e4
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/224883/cdc_224883_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 141.76 KB ]