People Our Clinical Nurse Consultants are on hand to answer your clinical and technical product inquiries. Also, Registered Nurses are available 24 hours a day for clinical emergencies. Please contact us by using the toll-free numbers below. more >>
Products - DUPLEX® Drug Delivery System A two-compartment flexible plastic IV container that uses breakthrough technology to store both the diluent and the drug powder separately until the point of use. more >>
Programs B. Braun's Clinical and Technical Support Program offers consultation on products and practices in an effort to promote effective product utilization, maximize safety for patients and practitioners, promote best practices, optimize patient outcomes, and enhance cost effectiveness. Our goal is to provide value-added services to assist in addressing the clinical needs of our customers. more >>
Facts About Needlestick and Sharps Safety
The Case for Needlestick Injury Prevention
An estimated 600,000 to 800,000 needlestick and other percutaneous injuries among U.S. health care workers occur annually.1
At an average U.S. hospital, workers incur approximately 30 needlestick injuries per 100 beds per year.1
Studies show that nurses sustain the majority of these injuries and that as many as one-third of all sharps injuries have been reported to be related to the disposal process.2
One out of every seven U.S. healthcare workers is accidentally stuck by a contaminated sharp every year.3
It is believed that only one out of three needlesticks are even reported.3
From these sharps injuries there have been 57 documented cases of HIV seroconversion among healthcare personnel through 2001. Two thousand workers a year become infected with hepatitis C, and 400 contract hepatitis B. More than 20 additional types of infectious agents have been transmitted through needlesticks, including tuberculosis, syphilis, malaria, herpes, diphtheria, gonorrhea, typhus, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever.3
The CDC estimates that 62 to 88 percent of sharps injuries can potentially be prevented by the use of safer medical devices.2
Needlestick injuries are preventable. Over 80% of needlestick injuries could be prevented with the use of safer needle devices.4
Less than 15% of U.S. hospitals use safer needle devices and systems.4
Needlesticks occur because dangerous equipment is used in fast-paced, stressful and often understaffed facilities.5
In general, passive features are more effective in preventing needlesticks than devices that rely on active safety design.5
1. Preventing Needlestick Injuries in Health Care Settings, NIOSH Alert, 11/1999.
2. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
3. International Sharps Injury Prevention Society (ISIPS).
4. Nursing Facts: Needlestick Injury, The American Nurses Association 2002.
5. Needle Points, An AFSCME Guide to Sharps Safety, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, 1/2002.
Risk Assessment Program
From an assessment and analysis of your facility's utilization of particular products/procedures to recommendations on maximizing safety for patients and practitioners, B. Braun is committed to supporting your individual needs. more >>
