Student Nurses Knowledge of Needle Stick Injuries at a Private Institute, Karachi

Needle Stick


I N T R O D U C T I O N
Needle Stick Injuries (NSI) are wounds penetrated to the skin by needles which can lead to infectious diseases such as Hepatitis B, C, and Human Immunode ciency virus. Objectives: To determine the student nurses' knowledge of NSI at a private nursing institute in Karachi. Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. A total of 67 participants were recruited through the purposive sampling technique. Data were collected through a valid and reliable questionnaire from September to November 2022. Results: Study results showed that 41.8% of participants were males and 58.2% were females. The majority of the participants, 62.7%, were between 20-30 years of age and had an experience of 5-10 years. 62.7% of participants have taken the vaccine against the Hepatitis B virus. Around half (53.7%) of the participants were exposed to needle stick injuries (NSI) during clinical rotations. Knowledge results showed that 22.4% of nursing students had a good level of knowledge, 17.9% moderate, and 59.7% had a low level of knowledge regarding NSI. The association was found only between clinical experience and student nurses' knowledge. Conclusions: Based on the ndings, high prevalence of NSI, a low level of knowledge of NSI among students, and a low immunization rate of the Hepatitis B vaccine. Therefore, the institute and hospitals should conduct educational training programs and workshops to increase the knowledge level of nursing students regarding NSI and an immunization drive against Hepatitis B to protect them from the deadly virus. of infection control personnel, and their suggestions were incorporated into the questionnaire. Furthermore, a pilot study was also conducted for the tool's reliability on 10% of the total sample size. The questionnaire was tested for internal consistency, for which Cronbach's alpha test was performed using the reliability option in SPSS software. The alpha coe cient for 15 items was computed (0.820), suggesting that the items have relatively high internal consistency. The questionnaires and consent forms were distributed in the class in hard copy, and the study's objectives and bene ts were told to the participants. A scoring system assessed nursing students; one point was given to the participant for each correct answer, while incorrect answers were assigned zero. The students' total scores ranged from 0 to 15, and total scores were classi ed into three categories: low level of knowledge, moderate and good knowledge. Students who scored above 80% considered a high level of knowledge regarding NSI scored between 60-80% moderate, and those below 60% had a low level of knowledge. Permission was taken from the management of Horizon Institute of Health Sciences (Ref # HSNHS 2022/276) for data collection. Every participant signed a consent form after being told about the aim and purpose of the data collection and their right to leave any time they wanted. Nursing students were also assured of their con dentiality and anonymity. Data were entered and a n a l y z e d i n t h e S P S S s o f t w a r e , v e r s i o n -2 6 . Frequency/percentage was computed for demographic characteristics, and the Chi-square test of association was applied to check the relationship of demographic characteristics with students' knowledge.

R E S U L T S
while in Maharashtra it was 25.2%, in Bangalore 74%, and in Iran, Sheraz, 76% sustained NSI [9]. The prevalence of NSI in developing countries is higher than the developed countries like Italy; the prevalence of NSI was 14.8, and in Saudi Arabia, 14.7% [10,11]. Multiple kinds of literature are present on knowledge of NSIs. To review internationally, a cross-sectional study was conducted in Iraq's Baghdad Teaching Hospital in 2020. The study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of HCWs toward NSI. Study results showed that 91.5% of participants knew safety boxes, 71.2% of using double gloves in phlebotomy procedures, 96% of discarding needles after use, and 96.5% knew that Hepatitis B, C, and HIV could transmit via NSI [12]. Studies in developing countries like India, 2021, showed that 62.1% of participants knew the latest universal precautions guidelines, 70.9% always used gloves when dealing with needles, 14.3% had injuries, and 40.9% strongly believed that NSI could be prevented [13]. Likewise, in Karachi in 2016, study results showed that 51% of HCWs were aware of standard methods of discarding needles, and 80.3% were recapping needles. Only 18.6% had knowledge of post-exposure management, e.g., allowing some blood to ooze after NSI, washing the site of the prick with an antiseptic solution, and reporting to the infection control center for further management. But in developed countries like Saudi Arabia knowledge level of HCWs was very high (94.7%); 81% were aware of the procedure and what to do after having NSI, and 47.1% agreed that NSIs are preventable [14]. Therefore, this study's objectives were to determine the student nurses' knowledge of NSI and an association between knowledge level with demographic characteristics of nursing students at a private nursing institute in Karachi, Pakistan According to table 1, Study results showed that 41.8% of participants were males and 58.2% were females. The majority of the participants, 62.7%, were between 20-30 years of age and had an experience of 5-10 years. 62.7% of participants have taken the vaccine against the Hepatitis B virus. Around half (53.7%) of the participants were exposed to needle stick injuries (NSI) during clinical rotations.    Table 3 results showed an association of the knowledge level of nursing students with their work experience*, but there was no association of knowledge level with other demographic characteristics of the students like gender, age, vaccination status, workplace, and incidence of NSI. . The literature review revealed that most studies were conducted on exposure to NSI among healthcare workers (HCWs) and nursing students who remained ignored and who were more vulnerable to NSI than other HCWs due to inadequate knowledge and experience; therefore, this study was specially designed for nursing students. Overall, the study guided us that the number of NSI can be reduced by educational training programs, workshops, and adding some chapters in the curriculum to increase the knowledge level of student nurses regarding NSI.

C O N C L U S I O N S
The results showed a high prevalence of NSI, a low level of knowledge of NSI among student nurses, and a low immunization rate of the Hepatitis B vaccine. So, it is suggested that an educational training program should be conducted at institutes and hospitals to improve knowledge of student nurses regarding NSIs and an immunization drive to prevent them from the deadly virus.

C o n  i c t s o f I n t e r e s t
The authors declare no con ict of interest.

S o u r c e o f F u n d i n g
The authors received no nancial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.