Global needlestick prevention group announces tools to assist healthcare workers, new members
Added: (Thu Oct 25 2001)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
SOUTH JORDAN, Utah, USA -- October 25, 2001 -- Kathryn McCarthy, a Navy nurse from Scotland, was taking a routine blood sample from a patient when she was jostled from behind and slipped, sticking the infected needle deep into the base of her thumb. As a result, she contracted HIV and died in 1996.
Unfortunately, Kathryn’s story is an all-too-common occurrence among healthcare workers around the world. The transmission of occupationally-acquired HIV through needlestick and other sharps injuries is a global concern.
ISIPS, the International Sharps Injury Prevention Society, is leading the charge for safer sharps injury prevention products on a global scale. ISIPS is the first international coalition of medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers, health organizations, healthcare professionals, medical waste disposal experts and others that are joining forces to provide education, information, and product knowledge that will help reduce the number of sharps injuries that occur every year.
In the United States, 160 people have contracted occupationally acquired HIV infections, more than 40 in Europe, and six in Africa. A recent survey conducted in the UK showed needlestick injuries to surgeons and assisting staff occurred in 5-6% of all injuries. In fact, one in six of all reported incidents in UK hospitals are needlestick injuries. In Amsterdam, a needlestick injury was reported for every five surgeries.
Compensation claims brought by hospital workers in Ireland who accidentally pierce themselves with dirty needles are now being settled out of court at a rate of one every two weeks.
To assist in responding to the growing need, ISIPS has launched a web site and an e-mail newsletter. Both the newsletter and the website (www.isips.org)
highlight regulatory and legislative information, needlestick and other sharps injury news topics from around the world. The electronic newsletter provides comprehensive information on protecting healthcare workers against accidental needlesticks and gives information on news articles from around the world. The free e-mail newsletter is available to the public by filling out the subscription form located on the ISIPS website (http://www.isips.org/register.php)
One of the unique features of the web site is a safety product/service section with over 60 unique categories of safety products and services that will continue to grow. Manufacturers joining with ISIPS are able to highlight their safety products and services on the web site. Ron Stoker, founder and executive director of ISIPS indicated, “ISIPS is committed to providing education about the variety of products and services that are currently available to reduce the global health hazard of contaminated sharps injuries.”
ISIPS also welcomes two new members including its second international company: Greiner Bio-One GmbH, with headquarters in Austria, and the Immunization Branch of the California Department of Health Services.
Greiner is the second medical device manufacturer outside of the United States to join ISIPS (Inviro Medical in Vancouver, British Columbia was the first).
"We extend an urgent invitation to medical and pharmaceutical device manufacturers around the globe to join with us in providing a one-stop shop for healthcare workers who are looking for best-of-breed products to reduce sharps injuries," said Stoker. “We intend to help raise awareness of the sharps injury problem around the globe and provide solutions that will help minimize sharps injuries. Needlestick and other sharps injuries do not need to be ‘part of the job’ in healthcare.”
Greiner Bio-One (www.greiner-bio-one.com) was the first manufacturer that recognized the safety problems of glass products in the blood collection and laboratory and then took corrective action. The risk of glass breakage prompted Greiner Bio-One to offer the virtually break-proof PET VACUETTE® plastic evacuated blood collection tubes that protect phlebotomists, laboratory personnel, and other clinicians from contaminated sharps injuries during blood collection procedures.
The Immunization Branch of the California Department of Health Services provides leadership and support to public and private sector efforts to protect the population against vaccine-preventable diseases.
With many patients receiving 3-5 shots per visit, it is important that the person on the other end of the injection device is competent. The Immunization Branch provides training materials on the injection practices that are the most effective, least painful, and are competency-based. The immunization Techniques materials developed by the Immunization Branch demonstrate only safety engineered needles and syringes. (http://www.cdlhn.com)
Other ISIPS corporate members include:
- Porex Medical, 909.390.9080, http://www.porex.com
- Amsino, 800.632.6746, http://www.amsino.com/
- Medamicus, (NASDAQ: MEDM), 800.559.2613, http://www.medamicus.com
- Bio-Plexus ,860.870.6112, (Pink Sheets: BPXS), http://www.bio-plexus.com/
- SuturTek Incorporated 978.251.8088, http://www.suturtek.com
- Biomedical Disposal, Inc., 888.393.9595, http://www.biodisposal.com
- Becton Dickinson ,201.847.6800, (NYSE: BDX) http://www.bd.com/safety/
- Inviro Medical Devices, Inc., 604.681.9399, http://www.inviromedical.com
- B. Braun Medical, Inc. ,800.523.9676, http://www.bbraunusa.com/
To find out how to join, or for more information on ISIPS, call 801-280-8797 or access www.ISIPS.org.
CONTACT: ISIPS | Ron Stoker, 801-280-8797| info@isips.org