A recent webinar featuring a veterinarian stressed the importance of handling needles to protect producers and their employees.
The Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center hosted a webinar on needle handling safety on May 29 and was presented by Dr. Jeff B. Bender, DVM, MS, DACVPM. Bender is director at UMASH and has many years of veterinarian experience in Minnesota and Wisconsin. He touched on the hazards of a needle stick injury with statistics from the swine industries in Minnesota and Iowa.
Bender presented proper needle handling as a neglected topic in agriculture, with 80% of workers claiming to have stuck themselves accidentally. Those who work on farms with food production livestock are eight times more likely to be diagnosed with a zoonotic enteric infection. The annual cost of agricultural related injuries has surpassed $7.6 billion, pushing producers and workers to look inward, and take precaution.
Needlestick injuries
UMASH conducted a case study of needlestick injuries where researchers found 67% of sticks were to the hands, 20% to the arms or legs, and 13% elsewhere on the body. Bender noted that needleless and high-pressure injectors are not effective in preventing injuries to workers in swine production.
Precautions should always be taken while working with animals, he said. Last year, 80 workers were seriously injured on Minnesota hog farms. One-third of these injuries were due to human and swine interaction.
While blood-borne pathogens from an unexpected needlestick is a risk, the unknown effect of the medication in the syringe on humans is an additional concern. Veterinarian vaccinations are not tested for safety in humans. Many injected medications involve hormones, presenting a new risk for the 63% of veterinarians in the United States are female. Bender recommended in the case of a needlestick injury to bring the medication administered along to the hospital for doctors to better understand the situation in forming a treatment plan.
Precaution pays
Many of these injuries can be prevented with proper education and handling practices. While recapping a needle, Bender recommended the scooping method. This is done by leaving the cap on a table or surface and inserting the needle into the cap, then picking the needle up vertically and securing the cap to the needle.
Needles should never be uncapped by placing them in the mouth and pulling the needle away. If possible, uncapping on a hard surface is best to avoid sticks, damage, or unwanted debris on the needle. A fresh needle should be used on each animal to reduce risk of blood borne pathogens.
Proper storage of used and unused needles can prevent needlesticks and contamination. Having a sharps disposal container nearby while injections are being given eliminates confusion, Bender said. Many sticks can be prevented by always keeping a cap on a needle not in use and once disposed of. In the case of a needlestick, it is recommended to tell anyone near no matter the severity of the poke.
UMASH provides many safety webinars, programs, and tips on their website for a variety of aspects of agriculture. Bender said that by prioritizing needle safety, the agricultural industry can safeguard its most valuable asset: its workforce.
Andrea Hanson can be reached at [email protected]
