Needlestick injuries
Protecting health-care workers - preventing needlestick injuries
WHO reports in the World Health Report 2002, that of the 35 million health-care workers, 2 million experience percutaneous exposure to infectious diseases each year. It further notes that 37.6% of Hepatitis B, 39% of Hepatitis C and 4.4% of HIV/AIDS in Health-Care Workers around the world are due to needlestick injuries.
The objective of the pilot projects is to reduce the exposure to HIV and other sharps-related infections (hepatitis B and C) in health care workers associated with injections. These projects which commenced in August 2003 are being implemented by WHO (Headquarters, Regional and National Offices), WHO Collaborating Centres and the International Council of Nurses, and are based on the Toolkit entitled "Behaviour Change Strategy to Achieve a Safe and Appropriate Use of Injections". The Toolkit provides technical and political guidance to health-care workers, administrators and politicians in order to promote injection safety.
- The joint WHO ILO UNAIDS policy guidelines for improving health workers' access to HIV and TB prevention, treatment, care and support services
- Protecting health-care workers - preventing needlestick injuries tool kit
- En Español - Prevención de lesiones por pinchazo de aguja
- Sharps injuries: Global burden of disease from sharps injuries to health-care workers
- Sharps injuries: Assessing the burden of disease from sharps injuries to health-care workers at national and local levels