Business Wire - July 2, 2002
The sharps injury awareness campaign is designed to provide information to healthcare workers, waste management workers, and others who are injured through needlestick and other sharps injuries each year. The month-long commemoration will take the form of educational articles, a mini-poster with sharps safety information, and a variety of activities by ISIPS corporate members. Managing Infection Control magazine and ISIPS will be joined by a variety of health organizations, journalists, and others in making the working public aware of the dangers of needlestick and other sharps injuries. The worldwide International Sharps Injury Prevention Awareness Month will start on the International AIDS Day, December 1, 2002. This is appropriate since needlesticks and other sharps injuries can result in the transmission of more than 20 different pathogens that have come from infected patients to workers via needles including HIV that can lead to AIDS.
Needlesticks and other sharps injuries are preventable! More than 80 percent of needlestick injuries can be prevented through the use of safer devices. Far too often, healthcare workers are becoming patients after being injured by contaminated medical sharps. Many other workers are also at risk from sharps injuries including cleaning staff, housekeeping staff, paramedics, law enforcement workers, and firemen.
"Healthcare workers and others invest so much of their time, energy, and talents into taking care of the needs of their patients," said Ron Stoker, executive director of ISIPS. "We need to provide proper medical devices that protect the healthcare worker as well as providing treatment to patients. We believe that the occupational hazards for healthcare workers have been underestimated on a global basis. Sharps injuries create an enormous health and economic problem even without subsequent infection. There are increasing numbers of incidents where workers are pricked by needles or other sharp instruments that may have been in contact with infected blood or other body fluids. Most of these injuries can be prevented."
ISIPS is a world leader in providing information about sharps injury prevention products. ISIPS has joined in the fight to reduce the number of accidental sharps injuries that occur globally by promoting the use of safety-engineered products and services. ISIPS currently consists of 34 corporate and association members that promote sharps injury prevention products or services. ISIPS website www.isips.org gives the opportunity for journalists, healthcare workers, and others to receive a free, weekly email newsletter with information about needlesticks, sharps injuries, HIV and Hepatitis. This free newsletter can be obtained by filling in the registration form. (http://www.isips.org/register.php) Corporate members of ISIPS will be participating in a variety of projects over the next six months to promote needlestick awareness.
"It is the mission of both ISIPS and Managing Infection Control magazine to reach as many healthcare professionals as possible during the International Sharps Injury Prevention Awareness Month," said Drew Whitney, editor of Managing Infection Control, a monthly magazine that circulates to 36,000 healthcare professionals nationwide. "The goal is to increase awareness as well as educate staff to safer practices to prevent injuries, saving lives and heartache in the process. We hope to encourage professionals within all niches of healthcare--from the hospital setting to manufacturing companies and suppliers, as well as various organizations--to jump on the bandwagon and join us in this mission."
For more information about the International Sharps Injury Prevention Awareness Month contact either ISIPS or Managing Infection Control with the information shown below:
ISIPS -- Ron Stoker, 801-280-8797, ron@isips.org Managing Infection Control -- Drew Whitney, 480-836-9199, drew@workhorsepublishing.com
CONTACT: ISIPS Ron Stoker, 801/280-8797
SOURCE: ISIPS
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