Work incidents with biological material in the nursing team of a hospital in Mid-Western Brazil

• Main Authors: Dayra Cabral de Carvalho, Jessica Cavalcante da Rocha, Mariane Carli de Almeida Gimenes, Ediálida Costa Santos, Marília Duarte Valim
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro 2017-12-01
• Series: Escola Anna Nery
• Subjects: Work incident; Worker's health; Nursing team
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1414-81452018000100206&lng=en&tlng=en

Abstract Objectives: To investigate and describe the occurrence and characteristics of Work Incidents (WI) with Potentially Contaminated Biological Material (PCBM), the frequency and variables related to this occurrence among nursing categories. Methods: A descriptive and cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach was performed at a referral hospital in the State of Mato Grosso, Mid-Western Brazil. Results: Women represented 90.5% of all participants and the mean age was 42.59 years. A total of 46.6% of professionals reported having undergone exposure to PCBM, 60.9% stated not having made a report, and 42.6% reported having participated in training courses on this subject. Comparing the occurrence of WI between nursing assistants and nurses, nursing assistants were more affected (p = 0.022). Conclusions: Among nursing professionals, the number of WI is high, recurrent and underreported. Continuing education on this theme is required to ensure the quality of care and promote workers' health.