Perceptions and beliefs of nursing and medical personnel about needle-handling practices and needlestick injuries.

A survey of 1473 nursing and medical personnel employed in two hospitals in a large metropolitan area was conducted to determine perceptions and beliefs about needle-handling practices and needlestick injuries. Additional questions in the survey focused on responsibility for discarding needles and syringes and the correct practice for disposal of needles and syringes in various situations presented. Analyses were based on 488 responses (33%). Nurses at the 437-bed University Hospital handled more needles and experienced more needlestick injuries than did nurses at the 300-bed Community Hospital. Needle-handling and needlestick injuries among medical personnel at the two hospitals were similar, although University Hospital interns and residents and University Hospital fourth-year medical students handled more needles than did the medical staff at either hospital. A total of 164 (33.6%) respondents reported receiving one or more needlestick injuries during 1983. A large proportion of respondents in each group reported that they did nothing about the needlestick injuries they experienced. Carelessness was perceived by all groups to be the most common reason for needlestick injuries. Most respondents reported some knowledge of proper needle disposal techniques and perceived lack of knowledge as the least important reason for needlestick injuries.