BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to develop and apply a prevention program for needle-stick injuries among health care workers who have a high occupational risk of such injuries, and to analyze the effect of the program on the subjects' knowledge regarding such injuries and compliance with protocols, as well as the incidence of needle-stick injuries among subjects. METHODS: The subjects of this study were nurses (RNs) and nurse's aides (NAs) working at a university hospital in Daegu. The data were collected by conducting surveys and determining the incidence of needle-stick injuries during a 1-year period before the application of the program. The program consisted of preventive education on needle-stick injury, the use of standardized boxes to measure blood sugar test, and the use of intravenous catheters with safety needles. Six months after the intervention, surveys were conducted to analyze the incidence of needle-stick injuries. The data on knowledge and compliance related to needle-stick injuries before and after program application were analyzed using the paired t-test, and data on the incidence of injuries were analyzed using the chi-square test. RESULTS: The scores on knowledge (RN, P<0.001; NA, P=0.007) and compliance (RN, P<0.001; NA, P=0.038) were significantly higher after the intervention than before. However, the number of reports on the incidence of needle-stick injuries before and after the intervention were not significantly different (RN, P=0.691; NA, P=0.079). CONCLUSION: The prevention program for needle-stick injuries was effective in improving the knowledge and compliance related to needle-stick injuries among RNs and NAs, but the number of reports on the incidence of injuries showed no difference. Therefore, the prevention program must be reevaluated and further developed after continuously monitoring and analyzing it in a hospital setting in order to decrease the incidence of needle-stick injuries.
Blood Glucose ; Catheters ; Compliance ; Delivery of Health Care ; Humans ; Incidence ; Needles ; Needlestick Injuries ; Nurses' Aides ; Plant Extracts