One of those articles indicates that the syringes were "dirty" (as in dusty and had obviously been stored near rodents), but they were not *used* (the distinction here is only made because I would expect that if someone was stupid enough to bring in a box of dusty syringes from home, they would likely give it a little rub on their lab coat so as to be unnoticeable). The other article doesn't make sense - the standard practice is to use one needle when drawing up more than one dose from a vial. Then it goes on to say that the vial was a single-dose vial and seemed to imply that the needle had been used in the patient and THEN put in the vial (again, no logic here). Seems like shoddy reporting to me.
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pediatrician practices for opening syringes for immunization in front of parents
- Thread starter axescot
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One of those articles indicates that the syringes were "dirty" (as in dusty and had obviously been stored near rodents), but they were not *used* (the distinction here is only made because I would expect that if someone was stupid enough to bring in a box of dusty syringes from home, they would likely give it a little rub on their lab coat so as to be unnoticeable). The other article doesn't make sense - the standard practice is to use one needle when drawing up more than one dose from a vial. Then it goes on to say that the vial was a single-dose vial and seemed to imply that the needle had been used in the patient and THEN put in the vial (again, no logic here). Seems like shoddy reporting to me.
quincy
Senior Member
One article is from 2007 and speaks of a (questionable) clinic’s practice of using the same syringe twice to extract anesthesia from a single-dose vial, contaminating the anesthesia and exposing patients to hepatitis.
The other article speaks of a doctor (previously arrested for psychedelic mushrooms, cocaine and ecstasy) who brought two boxes of expired syringes from his house. The boxes had rat droppings and dead insects and were obviously not clean ... but they weren’t “used” needles.
That said, yes, there are doctors and nurses who should not be doctors or nurses. If you are confident your doctor is not an illegal drug user or trying to squeeze every last drop out of a single-dose vial, you are - again - probably pretty safe in having your children get their immunizations from your doctor.
You really should address your concerns to your doctor, though. Pediatricians are used to hearing parent-worries.
xylene
Senior Member
This "safety" is linked to zillions of clinician needle sticks and many practices and hospital systems do not use this so called safety needle, that in truth was introduced in response to moral panic about used needles being fished out of the trash by iv drug users.
No safety benefits happen from having a clinician futz around with a needle. The best practice is to bin the entire unit in a sharpstainer asap - no recapping, no needless needle destruction.
While I don't disagree that disposing of the sharp immediately is the best practice, I would have to say that the safety locks on sharps have become the industry standard in my region. I also purchase the supplies for my facility (a school), and while I have not actively looked for non-safety needles, I can't remember seeing any from our suppliers. I teach my students to lock the safety with one finger in a single motion and then dispose of the entire thing (this goes for injection and phlebotomy needles).
My only lifetime needlestick came from a needle sticking out of a sharps container that was too full. If that needle had a safety lock in place before it had been disposed, I never would have been stuck.
quincy
Senior Member
Although health care providers get stuck with needles on occasion despite precautions, the biggest risk of getting stuck by a dirty needle could be to the general public from unsafe needle disposals by drug addicts, who throw them away in public restroom wastebaskets or toss them on the ground or dispose of them anywhere but a hazardous waste container.
stealth2
Under the Radar Member
Why?
stealth2
Under the Radar Member
Link #2 is over 10 years old. So you've found ONE instance for your concern? Seriously? I suggest you wrap your child in bubble wrap because children have fallen and been injured.
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