Injection practices in India

About 16 billion injections are administered each year worldwide, and at least half of them are unsafe. India contributes 25% to 30% of the global injection load. A majority of curative injections are unnecessary. The present study was undertaken to assess the burden of injections and prevalent injection practices in India.

A nationwide population-based cluster survey (1200 clusters; 24 021 subjects) at household level; along with observations, interview of prescribers (2402), and exit interview of the patients (12 012) at health facility level in the selected clusters was carried out -using probability proportionate to size (PPS) technique. Observations at health facility included generic observation (3592), observation of injection process (17 844), and observation of prescriber-client interaction (24 030).

The frequency of injections was 2.9 (95%CI: 2.8-3.2) per person/year. Of the total injections, 62.9% (95%CI: 60.7-65.0) were unsafe. Injections administered for curative purpose constituted 82.5% and a large majorly of these were prescribed for common symptoms like fever/cough/diarrhoea. Use of glass syringes was consistently associated with potential risk of blood-borne viral transmission. Satisfactory disposal of injection waste was observed at 61.3% (95%CI: 58.2-64.3) of the health facilities, and at 50.9% (95%CI: 46.7-55.2) of the immunization clinics. Significant differences were observed in the injection prescription pattern in public and private facilities, and in rural and urban areas.

Three billion injections were estimated to be administered annually in India; of them 1.89 billion were unsafe. Evidence suggests that the micro-level leadership for reducing injection overuse and making injections safer lies with the prescriber.