Rupak K C, Khadka Dipendra, Ghimire Sabal, Bist Aayush, Patel Ishant, Shahi Smriti, Dhakal Natasha, Tiwari Ibeja, Shrestha Dhan B
Department of Medicine Nepalgunj Medical College Banke Nepal.
Department of Medicine Lumbini Medical College Lumbini Nepal.
Health Sci Rep. 2023 Jul 5;6(7):e1399. doi: 10.1002/hsr2.1399. eCollection 2023 Jul.
Hepatitis B is a leading cause of chronic liver disease and subsequent liver transplantation. This is a vaccine-preventable illness. Health workers continue to be at risk for blood-borne pathogens due to occupational exposures. The overall goals of our study were to determine the prevalence of exposure to needle sticks and sharp-related injuries (NSSI) and hepatitis B vaccination status among healthcare workers (HCWs) of Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital (NGMCTH), Kohalpur, Banke, Nepal.
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs at the NGMCTH following ethics approval by the NGMCTH Ethics Review Committee. A pretested structured questionnaire was used to compile the data. Data was collected from September 15, 2021 to September 14, 2022. Collected data entered in Microsoft Excel and analyzed using statistical package for social sciences version 22. Analyzed data were presented using simple descriptive statistics with appropriate figures and tables.
A total of 304 among 506 HCWs (60.1%) participated in the survey were exposed to Needle sticks. Nine of whom (3.7%) were injured substantially (more than 10 times). Among nursing students, 21.3% had experience with NSSI. 71.7% of HCWs had received at least one dose of the hepatitis B vaccine, of whom 61.9% (44.5% of total HCWs) had received three doses.
This study demonstrated that more than two-quarters of HCWs were exposed to NSSI. Despite being at risk, vaccination status was still low, and less than half only received three complete doses. Precaution should be taken when working with instrumentation and procedures. Hepatitis B immunization programs for HCWs should be delivered at no cost with 100% coverage and protection. Raising awareness about hepatitis B infection and immunization remains crucial to primary prevention.
乙型肝炎是慢性肝病及后续肝移植的主要病因。这是一种可通过疫苗预防的疾病。由于职业暴露，医护人员仍然面临血源性病原体感染的风险。我们研究的总体目标是确定尼泊尔班凯科哈尔普尔尼泊尔根杰医学院教学医院（NGMCTH）的医护人员（HCWs）中针刺伤和锐器相关损伤（NSSI）的暴露率以及乙肝疫苗接种状况。
在获得NGMCTH伦理审查委员会伦理批准后，对NGMCTH的医护人员进行了一项描述性横断面研究。使用经过预测试的结构化问卷收集数据。数据收集时间为2021年9月15日至2022年9月14日。收集到的数据录入Microsoft Excel，并使用社会科学统计软件包第22版进行分析。分析后的数据使用简单描述性统计，并配以适当的图表呈现。
506名参与调查的医护人员中有304人（60.1%）曾有过针刺伤暴露经历。其中9人（3.7%）有多次（超过10次）严重受伤经历。在护理专业学生中，21.3%有过NSSI经历。71.7%的医护人员至少接种过一剂乙肝疫苗，其中61.9%（占医护人员总数的44.5%）接种了三剂。
本研究表明，超过四分之二的医护人员曾暴露于NSSI。尽管面临风险，但疫苗接种率仍然较低，只有不到一半的人接种了三剂完整疫苗。在进行器械操作和相关程序时应采取预防措施。应为医护人员提供免费的乙肝免疫计划，实现100%覆盖和保护。提高对乙肝感染和免疫的认识对于一级预防仍然至关重要。
