A Study to Assess the Knowledge and Practices of Nursing Students Regarding Handling and Disposal of Sharp Items

Sharps injury is a cut or skin penetration caused by medical devices like needles, scalpels and broken ampoules etc .which has been used on a patient. It is important to learn about handling sharps safely to prevent accidental needle stick injury and cuts. Needle stick injuries and other sharp injuries present a major risk for infection with hepatitis B virus, hepatitis C virus and HIV. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and practices of nursing students regarding handling and disposal of sharp items. A quantitative approach with descriptive research design was adopted. With use of convenient sampling technique, 150 nursing students were selected. Structured knowledge questionnaire and checklist were used to collect data on knowledge and practices respectively of nursing students in the month of March-April, 2016. Study findings revealed that the majority 70 (46.7%) subjects were having fair knowledge followed by 67 (44.7%) subjects having good knowledge whereas majority 143 (95.3%) subjects were having good practices. Results shows that there is moderate positive correlation (r= 0.258) between knowledge and practices. Significant association of level of knowledge with age, course, and year of study was found. There was no significant association of level of practices with socio-demographic variables.