and yet another

[NewlyGradBSN]

This incident really counts as a valid needlestick injury. My patient has an autoimmune disease, we were suppose to start an intrajugular catheter. It was my third time assisting in the mini-OR for the insertion. The procedure went well. After the procedure he wanted to test the patency of the catheter. After checking the patency, he passed the syringe to me without a cap on. I dont know how it happened but it grazed my thumb and I felt it pierce to my gloves. When I removed my gloves, I saw the site. I let it bleed. I washed it. My patient is negative for hbsag. My patient was pancytopenic. He also undergoes dialysis. Sadly, this public institution has no protocol for these cases. I do not know what to do. Please support me and message me fellow nurses

[papawjohn]

Had a frightening needle-stick back in the mid-90s. Working @ level 1 trauma center in large eastern city. Pt brought to my ICU with head injuries (beaten with pipe). Pt was young African-American male and is very androgynously dressed, skin and hair carefully made-up, nails polished. To a cynical old b#st@rd like me it said 'male prostitute' in large letters.

I was starting an IV to draw some early labs and to replace the EMS line, using the familiar 'angio-cath' with the spring loaded inner stylet. At that moment he had a seizure and drove the stylet into the septum of my left thumb. There it hung with his blood filling the flash-back chamber and mine dripping down the length of the stylet.

DAMN, I thought. I'm never going to have sex again. (Actually -- that's the honest truth. Didn't think -- I'm going to get AIDS. Thought --- sex is over.)

Amazingly, that young man turned out to be negative for anything!! No HIV. No Hepatitis. Nothing. And after being tested for 18months, I had nothing also.

But here's what I thought you'd want to know, NewlyGrad. There turns out to be a secret 'club' of people who've suffered needle-sticks and similar. Many nurses and also many Lab and Resp people. Very very few people actually 'convert' to positive status. It turns out that it's actually NOT so likely that you'll get HIV from a needle stick.

You should of course be tested. I understand there are anti-virals you could get as prophylaxis -- and I would advise you to pursue that vigorously. And the pt should be tested. But you don't need to have extreme fear or depression. Lots of us have had worse needle-stick injuries and never got sick.

Hope this helps.

Good luck to you.

PapawJohn

[NewlyGradBSN]

thanks papawjohn, im gonna get tested in 2 weeks time

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

A needlestick injury is serious. I am surprised that there is no needlestick protocol at your facility.

You must get your blood drawn immediately. Don't wait for two weeks. Did you report this injury to your charge nurse?

Ideally, you would get your blood drawn immediately after the injury and the pt will also have blood sent down for testing. This should happen AS SOON as you realized that you were stuck.

Since this is not the case, I implore you to explain the situation to your charge nurse/manager/supervisor and take the necessary steps to get yourself tested ASAP.

[papawjohn]

You should pay attention to CanesDukeGirl (with the very nice avatar, by the way) and get tested ASAP. You indicated that you practice somewhere besides the US. Here, your delay would be a serious problem for the Facility you work for (there are regulations about this kinda thing) and also for you. You see, here our insurers could possibly say that the delay in testing makes it reasonable to assume that you got HIV from some other source than the needle stick and attempt to deny they should pay for your treatment. Probably you don't believe that, but unfortunately there are health-insurance-companies just that horrible. So American nurses would be ON FIRE to get a complete panel of cultures and titers and such.

Again -- good luck to you

PapawJohn