Co worker stabbed in surgery

[ScaredNewNurse]

(I posted this in new nurse forum, but most folks over here.)

Hi all! I'm obviously a new nurse. I recently received my first RN nursing job at a private practice office. I have been on the job three full weeks.

Yesturday, one of the CMA's assisted a physician with an excision. During the surgery, the physician struck the coworker's hand with a pair of pointed, small surgical scissors. The incident broke the skin and resulting in some bleeding.

Afterwards, the concensus was that the patient would go for a HepC,B panel and HIV test. The doctor who owns the practice said that given the patient profile, the CMA was at low risk, and if the patient came back negative, she would be OK. He told the patient to have the bill sent to the office and told the office manager to send the patient flowers. He also told the CMA that it was unlikely for her to contract any illness. Basically, that the patient was getting tested and the necessity for her to be tested was not that large. Also, the chances of her "catching something" was so slim it was not worth the side effects from the AZT prophylatics.

I told the girl today that I would go get tested now, six weeks and three months out. She should not really rely on the patient as NO ONE really knows what goes on in someone's private life. In my education, I was told that there was a three month window. So that patient could have a had a one night stand last night, the night before or two weeks ago. Also, the patient's husband may have had an indiscretion.

For my own piece of mind, I would get tested. I would start AZT prophylatics. I called CDC and Univ. of CA exposure hotline today. According to UCA, someone would typically seroconvert in 25 days and with near 100% certainity know in three months that they would remain negative. Did I do the wrong thing in telling my coworker my opinion?

I don't want her to be upset, but I don't want her to blindly believe that if the patient tests negative now, she will be OK. She doesn't want to work with that doctor anymore and rightfully so. Today, I was the unlucky one who had to take over and assist with this physician's surgeries.

I'm afraid I'll get stuck working with her for the remainder of my employment. I was in an incident with this same physician previously when she nearly poked me with a suture needle.

I am appalled at the way the primary physician handled the whole incident. They didn't even give the poor girl the rest of the day off paid!:angryfire I would have been livid. I didn't want to be put in this situation. I didn't want to have to assist this physician. What about the employer sending flowers to the employee that was exposed due to the partner's negligence? :angryfire

What would you guys do?