The prevalence of needle stick injuries in medical, dental, nursing and midwifery students at the university teaching hospitals of Shiraz, Iran.

BACKGROUND

Medical, dental, nursing and midwifery students are at high risk for occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens (BBPs) via sharp injuries such as needle stick injuries (NSIs).

AIMS

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of NSIs and the knowledge, attitude and practices of these students regarding their prevention.

SETTINGS AND DESIGN

The clinical students at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Iran, were eligible to participate in a survey conducted by a self-administered questionnaire in 2004, asking them about NSIs during their clinical training undergraduate years.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A cross-sectional study evaluated NSIs and practices regarding protective strategies against BBPs in medical, dental, nursing and midwifery students at Shiraz University, Iran, in 2004. These students completed a self-administered questionnaire.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

The data were entered into a personal computer using Epi-Info (version 2000). Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests for categorical variables and student t-test for continuous variables were performed, where appropriate, using SPSS version 10. Alpha was set at the 5% level.

RESULTS

The questionnaire was completed by 688 (53%) students. 71.1% (489/688) of the students had NSIs that most commonly (43.6%) occurred in patient rooms. 82% (401/489) of NSIs were not reported. 87.8% (604/688) of the students received information about standard isolation precautions and 86.2% of them had been vaccinated against hepatitis B.

CONCLUSION

NSIs and non-reporting of NSIs were highly prevalent in these students. Education about the transmission of blood-borne infections, standard precautions and increasing availability of protection strategies must be provided.