Sharps and needlesticks
I’ve been fortunate enough to make it this far in my career without having a needlestick injury.
Correction, as a student nurse I discovered that 23g needles for intramuscular injections have caps that are very tight sometimes! So (pre-mastering of technique) I pulled from the end of the cap until it flung off, and I jabbed myself with a clean needle.
Not such a big deal: lesson learned, technique improved!
But thankfully I’ve never had the misfortune of being stuck with a dirty needle. I’ve come across some terrible, terrible work practices though which have left me quite amazed that I made it through without being stuck!
The last hospital I worked at had one doctor in particular (using older style cannula’s with no retractable sharp) who was notorious for putting an IV in, pulling out the sharp, and tossing it wherever he felt like at the time (IV trolley, hidden under gauze, on the floor, in the patients bedding – I’m not kidding). He then proceeded to take bloods and wander off, leaving his mess behind (including the hidden sharp for some lucky finder!)
I’ve seen a few people get stuck from trying to recap, particularly when using small needles.
For the last few years my health facility has used IVC’s with retractable needles, so you press a button after you withdraw the sharp and it retracts into itself. Lately though we’ve been trialling a different type where the withdrawn stylet is covered by a cap as it’s pulled out.
This type also includes an extension set that primes itself with the patient’s blood, so there’s less setup time and a lower risk of needlestick injury.
What are your experiences with sharps? Have you had better or worse experiences with different style IVC’s?
