Enhancing safety in health care: Long-term insights into monitoring and preventing occupational blood and body fluid exposures in a government tertiary care hospital

Abstract

Needle-stick injuries (NSIs) expose healthcare workers (HCWs) to blood-borne pathogens such as human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C, posing a serious risk. NSIs remain common in superspecialty hospitals due to frequent use of sharps, high-risk patient management, and complex procedures. This retrospective descriptive study analyzed self-reported NSIs in a tertiary care government superspecialty hospital from 2011 to 2023. Data of cadre, shift timings, device type, etc., were collected from the reported incidents. The Ishikawa diagram was used for root-cause analysis. A total of 92 NSIs were reported, 63% involved females. Most occurred among housekeeping staff (38%) and nurses (29%), during morning shifts (62%) and Procedures (34.8%). Hypodermic needles accounted for 72% injuries. Dialysis areas (22.8%) and intensive care units (16.3%) had the highest incidences. Fingers were the most common injury site (68.5%), and 71% were superficial. Only 56% of HCWs were fully vaccinated against hepatitis B virus (HBV). Continuous training, safety devices, and HBV vaccination are crucial.