-
Standard Precautions Among Health Care Workers
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 4]
Page 2 of 4
-
-
-
In Saudi Arabia, the prevalence of HBs Ag in healthy blood donors
ranges from 2.7% to 9.8% 9-10. Sero-prevalence studies suggest that the
overall anti-HCV positivity is about 3.5% to 5% 10=11.
Thalassemia and Sickle Cell disease are common in Saudi Arabia and
prevalence of hepatitis C virus antibodies among this high risk group is
about 40%12. The prevalence of HIV sero-positivity has been reported
to be about 0.09% in the Kingdom13.
These figures suggest
that a sizeable number of individuals are a potential risk for
transmission of blood-borne diseases to doctors, laboratory technicians,
blood bank workers, nurses, personnel working in renal dialysis and
transplant units, and other health care workers.
It has
been found that the risk of transmission of HIV/AIDS to health care
workers via needle stick incidents is 0.3% (1 case per 300 needle stick
incidents). A data combined from more than 20 prospective studies
worldwide of healthcare workers exposed to HIV infected blood through
percutaneous injury revealed an average transmission rate of 0.3% per
injury14.
The above studies including the study carried
out by Ofili et al on nurses in Central Hospital in Benin City clearly
revealed that knowledge of healthcare workers about the risk associated
with needle stick injuries and blood-borne infections in their day to
day activities in the work place and use of preventive measures is
inadequate15. It is believed that only one out of three needle stick
injuries are reported in the U.S., while these injuries virtually go
undocumented in many developing countries.16
The incidence
of infection with Hepatitis B virus has declined in healthcare workers
in recent years largely due to the widespread immunization with
hepatitis B vaccine.17 In many health facilities, even though the
personnel are vaccinated, the sero-conversion status after vaccination
is not assessed.
The potentially infectious nature of all
blood and body substances necessitates the implementation of infection
control practices and policies.
In 1985, in order to
increase awareness among healthcare workers of the dangers of sharp
injuries and other types of disease transmission, the Centres for
Disease Control (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) in the United States introduced the “universal
precaution Guidelines, which became the worldwide standard in both
hospital and community care settings until 1996.18
In 1996,
the definition and recommendations of universal precautions was revised
by the centre for disease control and prevention (CDC) and given the
new name of standard precaution.
Today, standard precaution
is the primary strategy to be used to reduce the risk of transmission
of blood borne pathogens from moist body substances and applies to all
persons, patients, clients and staff regardless of their diagnosis or
presumed infectious status. Their implementation is meant to reduce the
risk of transmitting micro-organisms from both known and unknown
sources of infection within the health care system.
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 4]
Page 2 of 4
-
