Needle stick from urine collection cup.. Patient HepC positive...

Nurses General Nursing

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So I am totally freaking out this is my second week in preceptorship and I was stuck by the needle that is inside of the urine collection cup the patient is hep C positive they sent off blood work on her and she is HIV negative thankfully... But I do not want to get the hep C either when her urinary analysis came back she has Trace Amounts of blood in her urine I was wearing gloves and I squeezed and squeezed my finger until it literally turned white and started to hurt I am so scared!!!!!!!!!!

Specializes in Registered Nurse.

I have not read all the post, but getting back to your question. I was stuck with a needle removed from a dialysis patient with hepatitis C, sometime in the late 80's, possibly early 90's, don't recall exactly. I was discarding the needle into a sharps container behind a dialysis machine that was not visible in a tight space. Why? that's where my employer placed the collection contaniers. I think I told this story here before. I completed an incident report, got tested a couple of times to see if I acquired it and after a couple checks, I was told not to worry. Recently, I've heard some commercials about hepatitis C and treatments. There are a couple of different drug manufacturers who provide medications that can actually help the body eliminate the hep c virus. There is a ton of forms to complete and procedures to follow to get approved for these drugs, but it seems more people are getting tested to check for Hep C now that treatment is available. My doctor does not know about my brief encounter with hep C, but for whatever reason my doc. decided to test me for it after all these years. My results came back negative for hepatitis C and I was stuck with a needle that contained some positive hepatitis C blood. Everyone is different and perhaps I have a super immune system, so do the right thing for yourself and whatever is recommended by your employer. I don't know the odds of acquiring hep C even if you are exposed with a contaminated needle. But having worked in dialysis a long time, I can tell you that we did not isolate patient's with hepatits C. However, hepatitis B precautions were strictly adhered to because Hepatitis B is very contagious and required isolation when performing dialysis.

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Leeleeboo7 said:
It was an unsafe Sharps container we have an old-style one in our med room....

I came here for support and most of all I've been torn down..... So thanks for that

Honey.. I never post on here because the majority of the responses are so judgmental and rude. It's not you. It's them. I'm so sorry you got stuck. I can imagine how scary that can be. Hopefully the labs come back clean and then you will have a scary close call under your belt and I bet it won't happen again!

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Specializes in Community Health, Med/Surg, ICU Stepdown.

I worked in community health for a long time with many Hep C positive patients and was taught that is is only transmittable through blood, so I doubt the needle in the patient's urine cup would transmit Hep C to you. Even if there was some blood in the urine it would likely be a VERY tiny chance. I'm so sorry that happened to you and I really hope your results are negative! Make sure to get re-tested in 3 months and 6 months to make 100% sure. Wishing you the best and don't let this get you down too much, once you know you are negative for Hep C move on and keep learning =)

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silasozzie said:
how ridiculous. In Australia, there is no needle anywhere near a urine collection

They're really very cool. But if you have never seen one, it's hard to imagine it.

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Leeleeboo7 said:
It was an unsafe Sharps container we have an old-style one in our med room....

I came here for support and most of all I've been torn down..... So thanks for that

My response was not rude or mean or judgmental. Please re-read it.

I understand your hurt feelings. I've been the brunt of rudeness and hate on this board, too. But my reply was not in that category and I am hurt that you apparently did not read or appreciate it. A person just can't win in this life.

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Leeleeboo7 said:
It was an unsafe Sharps container we have an old-style one in our med room....

I came here for support and most of all I've been torn down..... So thanks for that

So sorry for your accident.

I am wondering why you would have a "dirty" urine collection container in the med room in the first place. Those "old style sharps containers" are NOT for sharps disposal. They are most likely for disposal of high environmental risk medications, wrappers, containers, tubing, inhalers, etc. Usually one is for medical waste and the other is for incineration. Also, they are blue and/or black to separate from the usual RED normally used for sharps disposal.

For future reference, a specimen cup will NOT fit in a standardized RED sharps container opening.

A soiled urine collection container has its own separate disposal method. The used specimen containers belong in the DIRTY utility room that has a specially labeled RED sharps container with a larger opening. In some places, the two vials and the cup are all labeled(at the bedside), and all three go to the lab where they take the responsibility of discarding the soiled sharp safely.

The medication room should be treated as the clean utility room so there is no risk of cross contamination. I'm sure your facility has all of this written and spelled out in detail and can be found in Policies and Procedures.

I understand that sending a urine specimen feels like a straightforward process but all Hospitals tend to do things slightly different. Therefore, knowing your policies regarding collecting an uranalysis, clean technique, infection control, and appropriate medical waste disposal, should be consulted BEFORE the procedure is attempted independently. If there is no time for all that reading, I'm sure your preceptor or another nurse would be glad to answer questions or assist if needed.

PLEASE, if you are unsure how to perform any nursing procedure, don't be afraid to speak up. We would much rather things are done consistently and correctly on our units than have unfortunate accidents happen. We may always look busy but can always spare a minute for a new nurse to feel confident and stay safe.

Don't let this incident discourage you in continuing on with your preceptorship, and/or your career choice in Nursing. Believe me, we have ALL had embarrassing moments! When thinking of mine, I always think "well, at least I will never do THAT twice."

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welcome to nursing, rookie. it wont be your last stick. it happens.

don't freak out. In a few years you'll be sniffing psuedomonus wounds like old school ditto paper lol

stay cool, keep giving good care and put away your phone on the job. don't get distracted. take your time, and do it right. don't rush... (but work quickly)

you are likely just fine... its pretty rare that nurses actually get an infection (percentage wise, considering the nuber of exposures we have)

and remember.... gloves are a relatively new addition to nursing..... old school nurses remember smoking at the nurses station and hoping an acrylic nail didn't come off during a fecal impaction. *grin*

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