Magnitude of occupational exposure to sharp injuries among nurses working in South Gondar zone public hospitals, Northcentral Ethiopia: institution-based cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the magnitude of occupational exposure to sharp injuries and identify its associated factors among nurses. DESIGN: Institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted from 1 to 30 November 2022. ANALYSIS: The collected data were entered into EpiData V.4.2; then, exported to Stata V.14 for analysis. Variables with a p value of <0.05 at 95% CI were considered significantly associated with occupational exposure to sharp injuries. SETTING: The study was conducted in South Gondar zone public hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: Nurses working in South Gondar zone public hospitals. RESULTS: Of the total respondents, 213 (56.65%) were between the ages of 25 and 34 with the mean±SD of age 30.22±6.63 years. Similarly, 202 (53.72%) of the respondents were women. This study finding showed that the magnitude of occupational exposure to sharp injuries among nurses was 52.39% (95% CI: 47.92% to 56.37%). Moreover, this study finding showed that year of service >10 years (adjusted OR (AOR)=2.35, 95% CI: 1.21 to 4.57), lack of infection prevention training (AOR=1.85, 95% CI: 1.09 to 3.45), job-related stress (AOR=2.24, 95% CI: 1.27 to 3.89) and presence of contaminated sharps at the workplace (AOR=2.76, 95% CI: 1.67 to 4.72) were significantly associated with occupational exposure to sharp injuries among nurses. CONCLUSIONS: Generally, this study finding reported that the magnitude of occupational exposure to sharp injuries among nurses was high. This study finding also showed that years of service >10 years, lack of infection prevention training, job-related stress and the presence of contaminated sharps at the workplace were independent predictors of occupational exposure to sharp injuries among nurses. Hence, all the concerned bodies should strengthen regular provision of infection prevention training to nurses at all levels. Nurses should practice proper use of safety box more than ever in order to avoid the presence of contaminated needles and other sharp materials at the workplace.