Here is some useful information for what to do next when you have a needlestick injury.

Treatment of a needlestick injury

  • encourage bleeding from the puncture site but do not squeeze the wound excessively to make it bleed, wash with soap and running water, do not scrub the area. Do not suck the wound
  • go immediately to the nearest accident and emergency department, or to your occupational health service; do not delay as urgent assessment and treatment may be required.
  • report the incident to your manager and fill out your works accident book or complete a critical event audit it there is one in place but do not delay in going to the hospital; reports Can be completed later.

What information will I need to give?

You may be asked for all or some of the following information:

Is it a deep or surface puncture? If the puncture was caused by a needle, what gauge was the needle? Was the needle solid (suturing) or hollow? Could you see blood or bloody material on the surface of the needle or scalpel? Was the device previously in contact with the patient’s body fluids? If blood was injected into you, how much? Were you wearing protective gloves?

Information about any medical conditions, medications and allergies–Have you been exposed to HIV before? If so, when? How? Are you pregnant? Are you breast-feeding? Are you sexually active?

Whether you will agree to testing– Will you agree to confidential testing in order to document seroconversion (in the rare event of HIV transmission by occupational exposure)?

Follow up to sharps and needle stick injury treatment

Ensure adequate follow up of both injured party and source if known. The injured party will require early involvement by the Occupation Health service. They may need specific advice about having to take sick leave if medication is required, and the possible requirement for psychological support.

PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis) is usually given where there is a high-risk exposure to HIV and treatment should be started as soon as possible after the injury and within 72 hours at the most. The treatment course is usually in the region of four weeks and possible side-effects include nausea, diarrhoea, dizziness and headaches.

This information is not intended to replace professional medical advice, and this should be sought as soon as possible after the event.

If you have had a needlestick injury you are entitled to claim compensation and damages for the injury and stress, to find out how we can help you claim the compensation you deserve

To see how we can help you claim the compensation that you deserve, get in touch with us today.

Infection and testing following a needlestick injury

If you have a needlestick injury that would be classed as a significant injury, then you should have a medical assessment to determine whether a course of post-exposure prophylaxis is needed or whether further tests are required.

If your accident occurs out of hours for your doctor’s surgery, you should immediately attend at your local Emergency Department.

If the needle donor i.e. the person on whom the needles were used can be traced then informed consent should be obtained from then to obtain a blood sample to test for a blood-borne virus such as hepatitis B, HIV and hepatitis C.

Post-exposure prophylaxis

Once attending at A&E or your doctors a decision will be taken to decide whether to offer post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) if it is available.

HIV

HIV PEP consists of a 28-day course of antiretrovirals to be taken orally. It is crucial to the success of the treatment that the PEP course should be started as soon as possible, ideally within one hour of the injury or within 72 hours post exposure at most.

Hepatitis B

Vaccination and immunoglobulin may be recommended dependent upon:

  • The immune status of the child
  • Whether the source is known to be positive or not.

Hepatitis C

Although there is no vaccine or prophylaxis for HCV, treatment is very effective if initiated early. Therefore, if the injury is considered to be significant it is important to check for infection by HCV PCR testing at 4-6 weeks.

Tetanus

A tetanus vaccination may be recommended dependent upon:

  • The immune status of the injured party; if a tetanus booster was recently received prior to the incident then further vaccination may not be required
  • If the injury is one that is particularly “tetanus prone” then treatment may be required

Tetanus-prone wounds include:

  • Wounds or burns that require surgical intervention that is delayed for more than 6 hours
  • Wounds or burns that show a significant degree of devitalised tissue
  • A puncture-type injury particularly where there has been contact with soil or manure
  • Wounds containing foreign bodies
  • Compound fractures
  • Wounds or burns in patients who have systemic sepsis

Tetanus-prone wounds are considered high risk if there is heavy contamination with material that is likely to contain tetanus spores and/or extensive devitalised tissue

The tetanus vaccination regimen will range from no vaccine for a fully vaccinated case to an immediate dose +/- human tetanus immunoglobulin if the wound is high-risk.

If you have had a needlestick injury you can, regardless of any need for PEP, look to bring a claim for your injury and losses. Ison Harrison Solicitors can help you claim the compensation you deserve on a No Win-No Fee basis. This means that if your claim fails you don’t pay us a penny for the work we have done on your behalf.

You and your partner after a needlestick injury

Whilst the possibility of actual infection from a needlestick injury, or indeed injury from other sharps, scalpels, and surgical instruments is not high, the anxiety and stress caused by an injury can be severe and can place enormous strain upon a partnership. Sometimes it can be stressful for your partner for you to simply be working in an environment where there is a risk of injury even if you haven’t sustained an injury yourself.

Counselling for a needlestick injury

Accurate information can be a great help in these circumstances and this can be hard to find, especially when you are stressed, so read through our website to get more information. However, information may not be enough, and it is a good idea to consider counselling for your partner as well as for yourself.

To find out what you can claim and to see what we can do to help you contact us today on 0113 284 5000 or email pi@isonharrison.co.uk.