Prevention of needle-stick injury by the scooping-resheathing method

Abstract

Background The objective of this study was to determine the effects of teaching the scooping resheathing method on the incidence of needle‐stick injuries in medical students. Methods Before starting their first clerkship, 81 medical students were given a 15‐min lecture on the high incidence and dangers of needle‐stick injuries and a demonstration of the scooping‐resheathing method. The number of needle‐stick injuries that occurred during the 3‐month clerkship was compared with the number reported by 86 medical students who had completed their first clerkship 1 year previously and had not been given such instruction. Results Compared with controls, the study group had a 3.8‐fold lower risk of needle‐stick injury (95% confidence interval, 2.0–7.4, P < 0.0001) and a 8.3‐fold lower risk of multiple needle‐stick injuries (95% confidence interval, 2.0–35.0, P < 0.001). Those in the study group, who consistently used the scooping method had a much lower risk of injury than those who did not (1 of 36 [2.8%] vs. 8 of 45 [17.4%], P = 0.039). Conclusions We conclude that a lecture recommending the scooping‐resheathing method is effective in reducing the risk of needle‐stick injuries in medical students during their first rotation. Because this is the first time that an intervention not requiring change in equipment has been successful, further studies are warranted to substantiate our findings and for extrapolation to other medical personnel in other cultural settings. Am. J. Ind. Med. 34:15–19, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Injection practices of healthcare professionals in a Tertiary Care Hospital

“…Thus avoiding recapping of used needles is essential for preventing needle stick injury. Froom et al have also shown in his study that teaching one handed, scooping-resheathing method can reduce the risk of needle stick injury [23,24].…”

A survey of needle sticks and other sharp injuries among dental undergraduate students

“…34,35 The one handed 'scoop' technique for recapping has been promoted widely and there is evidence that it is highly effective, even for non-experience users. 36,37 The risk factors involved in NSIs have been extensively studied. Aiken et al 29 suggested that many of the NSIs occur during needle recapping which is in agreement with the findings of the current study.…”

Sharp injuries: a cross-sectional study among health care workers in a provincial teaching hospital in China

“…However, many approaches such as recommendations against recapping and increasing the accessibility of disposal containers have failed to reduce the incidence of needle-stick injuries [ 25 ]. Froom et al proposed that a lecture stressing the dangers of needle-sticks and recommending the use of the scooping method was effective in reducing the risk of needle-stick injuries in medical students [ 26 ]. In this hospital, we carried out several preventive countermeasures, such as equipping HCWs with the necessary personal protective equipment, wearing gloves before contact with a patient’s blood and body fluids, a ban on recapping needles after use, eliminating unnecessary injections, using automatically retracting safety syringes, and disposing of sharps into a sharps container immediately after use.…”