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Statement of
Karen Daley, MPH, RN
President
Massachusetts Nurses Association
Press Conference
Introduction of Health Care Worker Needlestick &
Sharps Injury Prevention Act
May 20, 1999
U.S. Capitol
Good morning. I'm Karen Daley, a registered nurse and president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association. On behalf of the American Nurses Association, I want to salute Congressman Stark and Congresswoman Roukema for their leadership on behalf of all 2.6 million nurses in the U.S who face the risk of potentially lethal needlesticks every day. Since the early 80s, ANA has been at the forefront of this issue -- calling for the use of safer devices and protections for health care workers.
Registered nurses have always cared for people in need whatever the circumstances -- during wars, epidemics and natural disasters. And we have answered this call with little regard to our own health and safety. Unfortunately, most of the institutions that employ registered nurses have not demonstrated the same level of care and commitment for those who care for patients. The Health Care Worker Needlestick and Sharps Injury Prevention Act represents a significant step in reducing the number of needlesticks among health care workers. It's estimated that U.S. health care workers sustain between 800,000 and one million needlesticks a year. And those numbers are probably too low-several studies show underreporting rates between 40 to 92 percent. Needlesticks are epidemic and bring with them the risk of serious and potentially life-threatening diseases such as hepatitis B, C and HIV.
Safer needle devices that would significantly reduce the number of needlesticks have been available now for more than 10 years!
Yet, in spite of widespread availability, less than 15 percent of U.S. hospitals have made the switch to these safer devices. As a result, thousands of health care workers each day are stuck by needles and are exposed to disease. And for some truly unfortunate health care workers, one needlestick can become a devastating source of infection and illness that has a life-long, life-altering and life-threatening impact.
I am one of those cases. Last July, I sustained a needlestick injury while working in the emergency room of the hospital where I worked for more than 20 years. And this January, I was informed that I was infected with the HIV and hepatitis C viruses as a result of this needlestick. I can't describe for you how one moment-the moment when I reached my gloved hand over a needlebox to dispose the needle I had used to draw blood-has devastated my life. That one moment in time changed many things for me. In addition to the emotional turmoil it has created for myself, my family, my friends and colleagues-it has cost me much more. The health, financial, career and many other losses and uncertainties I've experienced in a short time are profound. I've spent 25 years as a nurse caring for patients. I'd always assumed my retirement from patient care would come naturally-with age and deliberate planning. I never envisioned that it would be dictated by a single moment that was preventable and beyond my control.
Until this point in my life, I had enjoyed good health and only sought out routine health care. I am now truly a "patient." I have had to come to terms with the fact that I have been infected with not one, but two potentially life-threatening diseases. My dual infection causes complications-there has been little research done on how to treat HIV and hepatitis C dual infections. I take a daily regimen of potent anti-viral drugs-21 pills and one injection. To say these drugs interfere with the quality and routine of my life is a gross understatement. To date, they have caused me to lose more than 15 pounds, suffer hair loss, rashes and other skin changes, extreme fatigue, bone marrow depression and a consistently low white blood cell count.
I am no longer a practicing nurse providing direct care for patients. I have made a difficult and personal decision not to return to the hospital where I worked for more than two decades.
This injury that has wreaked havoc in my life didn't occur because I was hasty or sloppy in my practice. I did everything within my power--taking the important and necessary precautions such as wearing gloves--to reduce the risk of exposure to bloodborne pathogens. This injury didn't occur because I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. This injury and the life-altering consequences I'm now suffering shouldn't have happened and would not have happened if a safer needlebox or needle devices had been in place in my work setting.
Institutions and health care professionals often speak of the importance of prevention. Hospitals and others that employ nurses and other health care workers have an obligation to provide the same standard of care and prevention for care givers as they do for patients. Hospitals and other health care settings must do everything possible to protect their workers from unnecessary and preventable exposure to injury and disease. This legislation is critical. I share my personal story today and I will continue to share my story in order to make a difference. No other nurse, doctor or other health care worker should have to experience what I am going through. I am here to tell you that I am committed and the American Nurses Association is committed to work with Congressman Stark and Congresswoman Roukema and those here today to pass this bill. We will not rest until health care workers have access to safer devices and the protections they need - protections they deserve.
The American Nurses Association is the only full-service professional organization representing the nation’s 2.6 million Registered Nurses through its 53 constituent associations. ANA advances the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Congress and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.
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