title: [Implementation of safety devices: biological accident prevention].
abstract: Accidental exposures to blood and biological material were the most frequent and potentially serious accidents in healthcare workers, reported in the Prevention of Occupational Risks Unit within 2002.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Evaluate the biological percutaneous accidents decrease after a progressive introduction of safety devices. Biological accidents produced between 2.002 and 2.006 were analyzed and reported by the injured healthcare workers to the Level 2b Hospital Prevention of Occupational Risk Unit with 238 beds and 750 employees. The key of the study was the safety devices (peripheral i.v. catheter, needleless i.v. access device and capillary blood collection lancet). Within 2002, 54 percutaneous biological accidents were registered and 19 in 2006, that represents a 64.8% decreased. There has been no safety devices accident reported involving these material. Accidents registered during the implantation period occurred because safety devices were not used at that time. Safety devices have proven to be effective in reducing needle stick percutaneous accidents, so that they are a good choice in the primary prevention of biological accidents contact.
authors.affiliation: Unidad Básica de Prevención de Tortosa, Instituto Catalán de la Salud. tcatalan.ebre.ics@gencat.cat
authors.forename: M Teresa
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Catalán Gómez
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sol Vidiella
authors.forename: Manel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Castellà Castellà
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Castells Bo
authors.forename: Nuria
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Losada Pla
authors.forename: Javier Lluís
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Espuny
mesh_terms: D000062:Accidents, Occupational / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055885:Biohazard Release / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D016602:Needlestick Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011482:Protective Devices