Prevalence of Needlestick and Sharp Injuries among Health Care Workers in Johor:  The Vulnerable Combatants

Introduction: Needlestick and sharp injuries continue to occur in every phase of sharp device usage or disposal, despite World Health Organization (WHO) guidance to reduce them in healthcare settings. Each year, an estimated 32.4%–44.5% of healthcare professionals worldwide report at least one incident of accidental needle-stick or sharp injury. The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence and factors associated with needle stick and sharp injuries (NSSI).

Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study of all reported incidents of needlestick injuries in the state of Johor, Malaysia from January 2019 to December 2021 was conducted. The percentage of NSSI was determined and stratified by age, gender, job title, location and site of injury, and procedure/task during which the injury occurred.

Results: There were 713 cases in reported during the studied time period. The fraction of NSSI was shown to have a significant relationship with all examined variables (P <0.001). During the three-year study period, the reported proportion of NSSI was highest among House officers (34.9 %), followed by medical officers (19.4 %), Nurses (15.8 %), and other personnel (25.8 %). Hospital wards were the most common location for injuries (48.7%). Injuries occurred most commonly while working with patients (36.5%).

Conclusion: Given the high prevalence of NSSI, it is necessary to conduct training programmes focused on new methods of safely using sharp objects, adequate education on occupational safety and standards, reinforce personnel practical skills, and pay more attention to reporting and improving occupational behaviours in order to reduce the prevalence of NSIs and, as a result, the potential risk Blood Borne Disease transmission.