Awareness and Practices Regarding Needle Stick Injuries Among Health Care Professionals: Findings at a Tertiary Care Hospital of Karachi

Abstract

Assesment of the knowledge, attitude and practices of healthcare professionals (HCPs) regarding needle stick injuries (NSIs) at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi. Methodology: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 404 health care workers at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi. A self administers questionnaire was used to collect the data which was analyzed through SPSS version 22.0. Out of 404 HCPs, 83.17% were actively involved in the human activity of distributing any kind of injection during their duties. A total of 117 (29%) study participants were sufficiently educated regarding NSI practices (p<0.001). Among the HCPs, 64.9% had never read the institutional guidelines regarding NSIs. A total of 253 (62.7%) HCPs had sustained a needle stick injury at least once in the last one year; 75% of them  were previously immunized  with hepatitis  B vaccination.  The level of awareness among HCPs at tertiary health care level at Karachi is not satisfactory. Frequent training workshops, teaching sessions and symposia should be arranged to promote awareness regarding NSIs among HCPs.