Press Room | Sharps Injuries

What risks do these types of injuries present for healthcare workers, and what can be done to keep workers safe?

According to the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, around 385,000 sharps injuries – involving syringe needles, scalpel blades and other sharp objects that come into contact with body fluids – occur annually among the 5.6 million health care workers in the United States.

The incident occurred July 12 as the nurse was recapping a needle that had been used to obtain swabs from a patient with suspected monkeypox for disposal. The needle broke through the glove and skin on the nurse’s index finger and caused a small amount of bleeding, according to the report.

A recent study of work-related sharps injuries shows that health care workers had a sixfold higher risk than all other workers – but other workers are at risk, too.

With many livestock producers performing routine veterinary work themselves, it's important they take safety precautions around needles when vaccinating animals, experts caution.

Giving injections is a standard procedure in livestock management that comes with some risk. More than 80% of livestock workers have accidentally stuck themselves with a syringe when giving routine injections.