Injection practices among nurses--Vâlcea, Romania, 1998

In the early 1990s, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection associated with possible reuse of syringes and needles was reported among children in Romanian orphanages. These findings led health-care workers to use new disposable syringes and needles for administering injections. Bythe late 1990s, reports suggested that new disposable syringes and needles had become standard for all injections. However, surveillance data collected by the Romanian Ministry of Health (MoH) during 1997-1998 indicated that acute hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was associated with receiving injections among children aged <5 years. In Romania, injection frequently is used to administer medication, and nurses administer most injections. To identify the practices that might have resulted in injection-associated HBV transmission, selected clinic and hospital nurses were surveyed. This report summarizes the findings of the survey, which indicated that although nurses used new disposable syringes and needles, other inadequate infection-control practices might explain injection-associated HBV transmission. Results of the survey were used by the Romanian Coalition to Prevent Nosocomial Infections to prepare standards for injection safety to protect patients and health-care workers from HBV infection.