Patients' Knowledge of and Practices Relating to the Disposal of Used Insulin Needles

Musselman, Kerri T.; Sicat, Brigitte L.; Thomas, Michelle Herbert; Harpe, Spencer E.

doi:10.24926/iip.v1i2.203

Cited by 12 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…We found that many of the interviewed patients handled household sharps poorly and disposed sharps either loosely or into the household common garbage bin, household garbage pit or a common garbage dump in the area. The findings are similar to other studies done in this regard [9–15]. Such unsafe practices pose a major threat to others through the possibility of needle stick injuries [12, 14].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Practices related to sharps disposal among diabetic patients in Sri Lanka

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundPatients with diabetes on insulin therapy use sharps (e.g., needles) on a regular basis and a considerable proportion of them, within their home environments. These sharps and other bloodstained materials, if not disposed of appropriately has the potential to be a public health hazard.ObjectiveOur objective was to explore the practices related to sharps disposal among patients with diabetes from North Colombo Teaching Hospital (CNTH), Ragama, Sri Lanka.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study on 158 patients with diabetes from the CNTH. Patients had to use sharps for the daily management of their disease for inclusion into the study group. Data were collected on sharps disposal practices using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Clinic records were also used as a secondary data source.ResultsMost patients, 153/158 (96.8%) used syringes to inject insulin. Forty-three patients (27%) involved others (e.g., family) when disposing of sharps. Used sharps were commonly disposed to the household garbage bin by 66 participants (41.7%). Other methods used for sharps disposal were: sharps container, toilet pit, household garbage dump and indiscriminate measures. Importantly most patients, 147 (93%) had received no information on how to dispose of sharps after usage.ConclusionPatients commonly used unsafe practices in home-based sharps disposal. These included disposing of in the household garbage bin, burning sharps in the household garbage dump and disposing of into the common garbage dump of the community. Being male and being > 60 years of age was associated with a higher dependence on family members for sharps disposal. Patient education and public resources for sharps handling can help improve this situation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Patients who were educated about sharp disposal were likely to dispose of them “safely”. This finding is also supported by several other studies [3, 8, 9, 16, 17]. When all safe methods of sharps disposal are reviewed, there were no relationships between age, gender or type of diabetes.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Practices related to sharps disposal among diabetic patients in Sri Lanka

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This compares to 50% in a 2010 study in Virginia and 82% in a study conducted in the Philippines in 2014. 6,8 In our study, almost 45% of participants had not received education that included the proper disposal of sharps. Safe methods of sharps disposal in the community include drop boxes and supervised collection sites such as hospitals, health clinics, pharmacies, police and fire stations, and medical waste facilities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…The study questionnaire was adapted from earlier research conducted in the USA, Pakistan and the Philippines. [6][7][8] Participants (n ¼ 111) were recruited at our centre for diabetes treatment when they came for their routine diabetes medical visit. They were seen by two investigators and informed consent was obtained.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Green diabetes mellitus: a pilot project

Ashraf

Roe²,

Bansal

2019

J Prim Health Care

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

INTRODUCTIONMost of approximately 422 million people globally have diabetes mellitus use sharps for glucose monitoring. Many adults with diabetes are unaware of safe disposal methods, posing a risk of injury or potential infection to others. AIMTo determine how adults with diabetes dispose of diabetes care-related waste and to assess changes in their disposal habits after receiving brief targeted education during medical visits. METHODSAmbulatory adults with diabetes (aged ≥18 years) were enrolled during their medical visit. After completing an initial questionnaire, a handout on safe disposal practices was discussed with them, which was followed by a second questionnaire 3 months later. RESULTSThere were 111 participants at baseline (mean age 55 years, 50.4% had diabetes for >10 years, 52% female, 74.7% insulin users, 59.4% had home sharps containers, 53.1% had previous diabetes education). Of these, 40.5% reported disposing of sharps in their household trash. Insulin use, previous diabetes education or having a ‘Red Sharps’ container at home were each significantly associated with safe disposal (all P<0.05). Of the 96 (86.5%) participants who completed the second questionnaire, unsafe disposal of sharps fell from 39.6% to 10.4% (P<0.001). Preferred method of container disposal was the use of drop-off sites (pharmacies, doctors’ offices and hospitals). Outside their homes, 18.8% of completers had used regular trash for sharps disposal. Post education, this fell to 8.7% (P=0.065). Post education, reuse of sharps decreased from 38.3% to 14.9% (P<0.001) and improper handling of sharps (eg bending or cutting) fell from 18.8% to 9.4% (P=0.004). CONCLUSIONSSafe sharps disposal can be improved by providing a simple handout with a brief discussion at the time of medical visits. Disposal methods that are easy, convenient and free-of-charge are needed to further increase safety.

show abstract

“…The study by Musselman, et al 1 is small, with noted limitations, but it prods us to think about the reality of a patient faced with a chronic disease, and the headache of disposing the waste generated by their treatment. The study poses bigger questions about why patients choose to throw sharps away in the garbage, and begs us to take a minute and ask if we could be doing more to help our patients understand the risks of improper needle disposal.…”

Section: Commentary For Patients' Knowledge Of and Practices Relatingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Commentary for Patients' Knowledge of and Practices Relating to the Disposal of Used Insulin Needles

Johnson¹

2010

Innov Pharm

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Patients' Knowledge of and Practices Relating to the Disposal of Used Insulin Needles

Abstract: Objective: To determine (1) how patients currently dispose of used insulin needles, (2) whether patients were educated about disposal of their used insulin needles, and (3) who educated patients about the disposal of their used insulin needles.

Cited by 12 publications

References 14 publications

Practices related to sharps disposal among diabetic patients in Sri Lanka

Practices related to sharps disposal among diabetic patients in Sri Lanka

Green diabetes mellitus: a pilot project

Commentary for Patients' Knowledge of and Practices Relating to the Disposal of Used Insulin Needles

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About