Help, possible needlestick

Nurses Stress 101

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Hi there,

i'm a nursing student. While doing clinical, i thought i had accidentally pricked myself with a used needle. My instructor at the time was very intimidating and i was a coward. I decided not to go to her and pretended nothing happened. I did bleed and just put a bandaid on and wore some gloves. I do not know the patients history either, he did seem to be high risk (drug user).

Since then, i have grown worried. I have tested negative at 4 months for Hep c antibody and HIV-1/HIV-2 + P24 and those were negative. I am also immune to hep b. I'm waiting to test again at 6 months, but i have 5 weeks to go.

Could anyone offer some insight? I'm scared of coinfection and it delaying the window period. I don't have much experience, i'm only in my 3rd year and i'm so scared my career as a RN is ruined.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

Always, always, always follow procedures and protocols! No matter how intimidating, you should have reported this to your instructor as soon as it happened. Please be sure to do this should a needlestick injury happen in the future. Lots of reasons for this- they can test not only you but the patient as well; worker's comp won't cover a workplace associated illness if you wait to report it- they could claim you became infected elsewhere; etc. Also do some research on blood borne pathogen transmission- the risk is extremely low. The best place to discuss your concerns at this point is with your primary care provider.

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Thank you for your reply. I realize how stupid it was to not tell my instructor immediately, it's gotten to a point where i'm worried of how i can continue focusing on my studies. I'm so stressed. I tried expressing my concerns to my family doctor who doesn't seem to be taking me seriously. I have so many questions and he didn't seem to want to answer any of them. He just stated to get tested again at 6 months. Do you think my risk is a bit lower since I've had my 4 month hep c/hiv neg?

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

Asking if I think your risk is lower is bordering on medical advice. If you can't get the answers you seek from your healthcare provider, you can always make an appointment with someone else to discuss this. If your worries are so great that it's affecting other areas of your life, you may also want to see someone to help you deal with the emotional aspect.

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Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.

What you are asking is something that is better posed to your healthcare provider. If you are not comfortable with your present provider, please seek the opinion of another. We cannot, per Terms of Service, advise you. We do wish you well.

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