Best Practices For Preventing Needlestick Injuries Among Healthcare Workers: A Focus On Safety Protocols And Implementation Strategies

Abstract

Background: In hospitals, healthcare workers are at high risk of infection from blood-borne pathogens, such as hepatitis B and C viruses and human immunodeficiency. Occupational exposure to needle-stick injuries (NSIs) continues to be a major health problem in the healthcare systems of developing countries. Awareness of hazards is essential to establishing a policy and occupational health safety system that significantly improves employee performance, morale, and productivity.

Objectives of the study: This study aimed to assess levels of awareness, practices, and perceptions about NSIs among healthcare workers and their association with demographic and functional characteristics.

Methodology:  This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on healthcare workers in Thi-Qar Province. Five out of 10 hospitals in Thi-Qar governorate were selected using a multi-stage random sampling method, with 50% of the hospitals selected, which are (Rifai Teaching Hospital, Second Bint Al-Huda Teaching Hospital, third Muhammad Al-Moussawi Children’s, four Al-Habboubi Hospitals, and five Souq Al Shuyoukh General Hospital). After that, a stratified random sampling technique of 400 healthcare workers in Thi-Qar province hospitals who are enrolled in the five hospitals. Stratified random sampling techniques were conducted according to the workplace of HCWs. Then participants were selected by simple random sampling from each unit or department with the various functional titles. The data was collected through direct interviews with every healthcare worker by using a self-design questionnaire for the period from 3 August 2024 until 31 December 2025.

Result: The results of this study indicate that 54.8% of health workers have a moderate awareness level. Regarding assessment of practices, the results found that 59.2% of health workers have a good practices level. As for assessment of perception, most health workers (66.0%) have a neutral perception level. Furthermore, the results explain that high education, those live in urban areas, married, functional titles such as physicians, dentists, and Bacteriologists, and those work in laboratory units, operation rooms, and dental units have good assessment scores for awareness about needle stick injuries at significantly level <0.05. also, these results explain that high education, married, functional titles such as physicians, dentists, and Bacteriologists, and long service years have good assessment scores for practices about infection prevention and control measures at a significant level <0.05. The present results reveal that there is a significant relationship between demographic characteristics (such as gender, and marital status) and overall perception scores (P value <0.05). The results found there was a positive correlation between overall awareness score with overall practice score (P<0.001; r=0.482) and overall perception score (P<0.001; r=0.317). Also, there were a positive correlation between the overall perception score and with overall practice score (P<0.001; r=0.506).

Conclusions: There were fair levels of awareness and perception in most healthcare workers about needle stick injuries. While there was good practice among more than half of the healthcare workers. The results found there were positive correlation between overall awareness score, overall practice score and overall perception score of health care workers.

Recommendations: This study recommended that each hospital develop a multi-pronged strategy to address needlestick injuries among healthcare workers by encouraging educational and training programs, and developing a protocol for documented reporting of needlestick injuries.