4th day on the floor and.....

biker nurse · Jul 6, 2011

You report it? and write the occourance report? If Not do so immediately!! call supervisor right now!! DO what they want you to and try not to worry. The odds are in your favor. ( unless drug abuser.. Hope Not))

cherrybreeze, ADN, RN · Jul 6, 2011

You report it? and write the occourance report? If Not do so immediately!! call supervisor right now!! DO what they want you to and try not to worry. The odds are in your favor. ( unless drug abuser.. Hope Not))

Even if the patient is a drug abuser, the odds are STILL in the OP's favor. I can't remember the numbers exactly, but there is still a LESS THAN 1% chance of contracting an illness from someone KNOWN to be infected with a blood borne pathogen (Hep B, HIV, etc).

It sucks, but it happens. I'm sorry it happened to you!

Old.Timer · Jul 6, 2011

How did it happen?

jimboslice · Jul 6, 2011

It is less than 1% with HIV but the Hepatitis has a higher rate of transference......best bet is to report and take the meds!! Good luck

cherrybreeze, ADN, RN · Jul 6, 2011

It is less than 1% with HIV but the Hepatitis has a higher rate of transference......best bet is to report and take the meds!! Good luck

Of course the best bet is to report. That goes without saying.

"Taking meds" likely won't be necessary, though. They will test the patient for bloodborne illness. If meds are required, of course take them, but it's certainly not automatic that meds would be needed/recommended.

Hep B does carry a higher risk, yes, but I know where I worked, we were required to be vaccinated and show proof of antibodies (that the vaccine "worked"). I don't know if everywhere requires this vaccine, but that makes the risk much less.

KaksRN · Jul 6, 2011

Yes, of course, I reported it. I had to check into the ER for blood work. Can't sleep now, thinking about it........

BonewaxRN · Jul 6, 2011

http://www.impactednurse.com/?p=334 Take a look at this article, it outlines the various risks for transmission of HIV and hepatitis from a needlestick.

I have been where you are and it is a terrible place to be. I am sorry this has happened to you. Take heart from this information, arm yourself with the facts. It is crucially important that you reported it, and you must must must follow up with whatever treatment plan is decided. Be assertive in seeking out care.

My very best wishes go with you.

Tait, MSN, RN · Jul 6, 2011

I got bloody pee in my eye once from a crappy foley cath I was emptying. Eye washing for 15 minutes sucks. Thankfully my patient was clean and the poor guy felt bad because it happened right at the end of my shift.

Try not to stress too much about it and get some sleep :)

:hug:

KaksRN · Jul 6, 2011

thanks guys. I haven't looked at the article yet...but do you think i'm at any advantage because it was a needle used for a PPD (intradermal)?

BonewaxRN · Jul 6, 2011

The smaller the gauge of the needle, the better. The less blood load in the needle, the better. Not being in a vein or artery is conducive to a low blood load. Take a look at the article for more insight. There are an awful lot of people who have had the same thing happen to them. It's one of the hazards of nursing.

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Jul 6, 2011

i got stuck with a big fat needle thoughtfully concealed in sterile towels by the resident who had just used it to do a liver biopsy on the yellowest man i had ever seen. that was thirty-five years ago. i did, of course, report it right away and got a butt-full of what was billed at the time as immune serum, given by a new paramedic student who thought he was gonna die when he had to give two ims in the butt to an icu nurse. he sagged to the floor and got pale and faint afterwards; i hiked up my scrubs and said, "thanks, bud," as i went back upstairs.

learning later that sometimes it takes 35-40 years to show up with liver cancer after hep c infection made me put it in my denial file until now, and now i know that if i don't have hep c by now i'm probably fine :) subq needle? pah. risks are miniscule. you'll forget all about it soon.

(and wait til all us old timers start ragging you newbies about when there was no such thing at all as a needle less system! you wanna talk about needle sticks?)