Safety Alert (Sciences) - Use of Surgical Sharps

News

Posted on Thursday 19 June 2025

Recently, there has been a rise in incidences of cut & puncture injuries to hands which have been caused by handling surgical sharp tools (e.g. scalpel blades & needle syringes) in laboratories.

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Importantly, in many cases the sharp which caused the injury was contaminated with hazardous chemical or infectious biological material. This increases the risk of developing ill health or infection.

WORKING SAFELY

Surgical sharps injuries almost always occur due to human error, either due to mistakes, lapses or poor planning & organisation.

In this case, two of the most important precautions for working safely with surgical sharps, especially when they are contaminated, are:

Organisation & control of the workstation

The workstation should be well-organised with minimal clutter or obstacles. Poor organisation can increase the chances of snagging, loss of control of the sharp tool & self-inoculation.
The work process should be simple and methodical, focusing on the single task involving the sharp. Multi-tasking or trying to handle multiple items at once should be absolutely avoided.
Work should be planned & timed to minimise the potential for distractions or interference at the workstation.

Training & awareness

Give due time & respect to the task, appreciating the increased personal risk and the consequences from a small lapse in concentration
Follow your training & standard operating protocols, in particular maintain self-awareness of where your hands & fingers are in relation to the blade / needle, keeping a safe separation distance at all times.
Refresher training & supervision is always available if you feel your competence has lapsed. Do not start an experiment if you do not feel confident in your abilities to handle a surgical sharp tool.

OTHER KEY SAFETY PRECAUTIONS:

NEVER re-sheath needles.
IMMEDIATELY dispose of single-use scalpels / needles in a sharps bin following use. The sharps bin should be within arms length at the workstation.
If there is an issue with a disposable sharp tool, simply dispose directly into a sharps bin and restart work with a new tool. Avoid trying to repair by hand (e.g. actions that involve adjusting blades or applying force).
Use steel tweezers (ideally with rubber tips) to adjust a scalpel blade if absolutely necessary - DO NOT try to do this by hand.