Details:

• Alternative Title:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Report: Needlestick Injuries among Employees at a Retail Pharmacy Chain – Nationwide: HETA 2011-0063-3154
• Personal Author:
  De Perio, Marie A.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  In February 2011, NIOSH received an HHE request from management representatives at a nationwide retail pharmacy chain. The request concerned pharmacists' potential exposure to needlestick injuries while administering vaccines in pharmacy locations nationwide. The pharmacy chain began offering adult vaccinations in 2000 in select locations and had since expanded this service to all locations. Prior to our visit, we reviewed the company's written policies and procedures regarding vaccine administration, needlestick injuries, and bloodborne pathogens. We also analyzed the information in the company's needlestick injury reports. We visited two pharmacies in October 2011 where we observed work processes, work practices, and workplace conditions. We also interviewed pharmacy employees. The company's written policies and work procedures were comprehensive. In our review of needlestick injury reports, we found 33 reported needlestick injuries over an 11-year period. The annual incidence of needlestick injuries ranged from 0-3.62 per 100,000 vaccinations and ranged from 0-5.65 per 1,000 immunizing pharmacists. Work practices relating to sharps were observed to be safe at both of the pharmacies we visited. Pharmacists who have the added responsibility of administering vaccinations have become an emerging occupational group at risk of needlestick injuries. However, the incidence of needlestick injuries among employees at this retail pharmacy chain appears to be lower than that found in the hospital setting. This may be due to the nature of the procedures being performed, which require less manipulation (such as phlebotomy or suturing), activation of the safety devices, the company's training programs, and safe work practices. We recommended that the company continue to encourage employees to follow all written work procedures. We recommended improvements to the positioning of patients and equipment during vaccine administration and health screenings to improve safety. We also recommended obtaining additional information on the circumstances of the injury for the needlestick injury reports. This information may be useful in determining factors contributing to these injuries at the pharmacy and in evaluating the safety of devices. Employees should continue to use safe work practices during vaccine administration and health screenings and should promptly report all needlestick injuries.
• Subjects:
  [+]

  Blood Blood-Borne Pathogens Health Personnel Hematologic Diseases Needlestick Injuries Occupational Health Pharmacies Safety
• Keywords:
  [+]

  Author Keywords: Pharmacies And Drug Stores Bloodborne-pathogens Bloodborne Pathogens Health-care-personnel Needlestick-injuries Needlestick Injuries Pharmacists Pharmacy Pharmacy-workers Sharps Injuries Vaccination Vaccines Work-operations Work-practices
• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 2011-0063-3154, 2012 Mar ; :1-21

  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 2011-0063-3154, 2012 Mar ; :1-21 Less -
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA201100633154
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  United States
• 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:
  1-21;28 pdf pages;
• Contributor:
  Gomaa, Ahmed;Evans, Stefanie;Hartle, Greg;
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20040454
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2012-106670
• Citation:
  NIOSH [2012]. Health hazard evaluation report: needlestick injuries among employees at a retail pharmacy chain – Nationwide. By MA de Perio. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, NIOSH HETA No. 2011-0063-3154. https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA201100633154
• Editor(s):
  Galloway, Ellen
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  446110 - Pharmacies and Drug Stores - (NAICS)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  [+]

  urn:sha-512:51c0b3b97f65299abab8ebabf17d470e35afc9ed00d0742f50dc3a8a610f7aae62c895ca05bb7ea0fd290fae058e7c741903599a8f5d5545dad5442363b6e0b6
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/52435/cdc_52435_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF-1.21 MB]