I was an HIV-hemophilia nurse clinician for five years before returning full-time to graduate school last fall. And I, like so many other health care professionals, suffered a needlestick-related injury within that time. Many peers reacted as though I had suffered a paper cut....

It is very important to have a healthy respect for the risks that exist in health care. Professional denial is one reason why the private hospital industry alone has a reported 10.5% occupational injury and illness rate. Needlesticks account for the majority of bloodborne pathogen transmissions in health care settings. It's estimated that most needlesticks could be prevented with the use of available safety technology....

Most health care institutions don't use the newer technology, and it would be to our advantage to push for pilot programs to show the cost-effectiveness of such technology if these institutions balk at large-scale purchases of such equipment.

Joann Deutsche, RN,C

Member, ANA HIV Task Force; Des Plaines, IL; November 1993