According to OSHA, “removing contaminated needles and reusing blood tube holders can expose workers to multiple risks. Blood is denser and more adhesive than plasma, which would result in a larger volume of inoculum remaining on contaminated surfaces. AFTER YOU draw blood, the blood tube holder provides your only protection from the back end of the phlebotomy needle. This volume was so small that this inoculum was invisible to the naked eye and was less than the 1.4 μL (mean volume) inoculum of a hollow needlestick injury.
If RBCTH is ever used, the phlebotomist must follow the manufacturer’s instructions by disinfecting all RBCTH between patients and releasing the tourniquet as soon as blood flows into the sample vessels.
Can blood tube holders be reused?
Without providing evidence that the blood in the tube holder belonged to the patient’s own blood and not to the source patient, the opinion of Tsang et al. is speculative. As long as there is a pressure drop between the vein below and above the tourniquet, HCV-contaminated blood can flow into the patient when the tourniquet is released. In a statement released today at the International Congress of Clinical Chemistry in Orlando, the NPA called on phlebotomists and other healthcare workers to stop reusing blood tube holders to draw blood from patients. The BD Vacutainer Safety-Lok blood collection kit with a pre-assembled bracket, which performs up to 300 blood samples per day, has been adopted to improve the safety of healthcare workers and patients and streamline operations.
Can you reuse Vacutainer Holders?
Remove contaminated needles and then reuse blood tube holders. Modern blood tube holders can be reused, but in most cases, they are not to minimize a worker’s exposure to blood. In December, the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission confirmed a quote regarding the reuse of blood tube holders against MetWest, a subsidiary of laboratory company Quest Diagnostics from Madison, NJ. However, the results of the NPA study, the rise in antibiotic-resistant pathogens, and the prevalence of health-related infections prompted the association to strengthen its stance against the reuse of blood tube holders.
The statement cited a study completed by the NPA that found that 99 percent of the sampled reusable holders were contaminated with blood, creating an unnecessary risk of exposure to HIV, hepatitis C virus, hepatitis B virus and other blood-borne pathogens for employees. However, OSHA warned employers in 2003 that the practice unnecessarily involves the risk of a pinprick at the back of the exposed needle.
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OSHA allows contaminated needles to be removed and safe blood tube holders to be reused.
The increased manipulation required to remove a contaminated needle from a blood tube holder is not necessary and may result in a needle prick on the front or back end of the needle. When carrying out a blood sample, OSHA requires the disposal of blood tube holders with a safety pin that is attached immediately after each patient has taken blood. He said compliance support specialists, who work separately from OSHA’s enforcement program, are available in every area office to help employers identify and reduce hazards that lead to such accidents. OSHA gave the company a serious quote because it doesn’t protect workers by assuring that instructors had the knowledge and experience to train operators of powered industrial trucks and their.
What is a tube holder for phlebotomy?
Individual and multi-purpose devices are used in conjunction with blood collection tubes and needles to collect and transfer patient blood samples in healthcare. The equipment required for blood collection includes at least gloves, alcohol or iodine to clean the area, a tourniquet, tubes, a tube holder, needles, tape, and gauze. The increased manipulation required to remove a contaminated needle from a blood tube holder is not necessary and may result in a needle prick on the front or back end of the needle. A needle is inserted into the vein while the vacuum blood collection tube is inserted into the holder and punctured with the needle at the other end of the tool.
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