Prevalence of Needle Stick Injury and Associated Determinants among Healthcare Employees of Tertiary Care Hospital, Bangladesh

Objective Needle stick injuries (NSIs) are a recurrent issue among healthcare employees. The study aims to evaluate the frequency of needle stick injuries and identify predisposing components at a tertiary care facility in Dhaka. Methods This descriptive cross-sectional study was organized at six medical and dental hospitals in Dhaka, Bangladesh from January 2023 to August 2023. The study sample consisted of 240 doctors, dentists, and paramedical staff working at the hospital. The data was collected via a structured questionnaire with nine close ended questions for the study subjects. The analysis of data was done using SPSS 23. Results The overall prevalence of NSIs was 60%. The main reason for incurring the injury was drawing blood which accounts for 54% of the total injuries, the second was while performing surgery (27%) and breaking vials (12%). The predominance of the injuries happened during the morning shift (81%). A large majority, i.e., 60%, did not report their injury, and 74% of the study population reported that the vaccination for Hepatitis B was taken prophylactically. A large majority managed a needle stick injury by wound toilet (30.5%), and the same percentage of the study population ignored it. Conclusion This study observed that healthcare providers had a high prevalence of needle stick injuries. Hospital administration must devise a way to increase the availability of safety equipment, reduce workload, and provide better training to reduce the risk of injury. Moreover, reporting must be made mandatory for all those who incur this kind of injury in the future and immunization must be made available.