Sharp injuries and their determinants among health care workers at first-level care facilities in Sindh Province, Pakistan.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the rate and determinants of sharp injuries during the previous 6 months among health care workers at first-level care facilities in two districts of Pakistan.


METHODS
Cross-sectional survey at public, general practitioners and non-licensed private practitioners selected through stratified random sampling. At each facility, we interviewed a prescriber and a dispenser/injection provider about knowledge of bloodborne pathogens transmission and preventive practices, risk perception, and use of precautions and sharp injuries received during the previous 6 months. Multivariable Poisson regression was used to assess the factors associated with the number of sharp injuries.


RESULTS
Fifty-four percentage of the 233 workers had at least one injury during the previous 6 months. The overall rate of sharp injuries per person per year was 3.7; among non-physician prescribers (9%), it was 4.3; among dispensers (69%), it was 3.7, and among physicians (18%), it was 2.1. In the multivariable model, work experience, risk perception and type of health care worker were significantly associated with receiving sharp injuries during the previous 6 months. In the model including dispensers only, a higher knowledge score was associated with fewer sharp injuries, while perceived severity of disease and lack of professional qualification were associated with more.


CONCLUSIONS
Sharp injuries are common in Pakistan. Better knowledge about modes of bloodborne pathogen transmission and professional qualification may reduce their incidence.
Janjua
Naveed Z
NZ
Department of Community Health Sciences, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan. Naveed.Janjua@bccdc.ca
Khan
Mohammad I
MI
Mahmood
Bushra
B
D000328:Adult; D017848:Blood-Borne Pathogens; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D017758:Infectious Disease Transmission, Patient-to-Professional / Q000517:prevention & control; D008503:Medical Staff / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016602:Needlestick Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010154:Pakistan / Q000453:epidemiology; D010465:Perception; D010564:Personnel, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012306:Risk; D018570:Risk Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult