Occupational Hazards
As I had my lectures in Infectious Diseases, especially in HIV, needlestick injuries and TB. I felt something.I felt vulnerable.
I used to clerk patients without wondering if they were infective. I examined wounds with bare hands, had some patients cough in my face because I forgot to ask them to turn away during a hernia examination and *gasp* washed my labcoat every posting. (Considering that some postings were 8 weeks, this is very shocking. But for those who know me, I wash it more often now.)
When I take blood, I do consider the possibility of needlestick injuries. But sometimes I see the sharps lying in the kidney dish, the drop of blood on the top of the vacutainer tube and I wonder if I could have done more.
I know that in every occupation, there is a hazard. Policemen could get shot, construction workers get crushed by falling objects, taxi drivers could get into a nasty accident and office workers get paper cuts. Healthcare workers, we get infected.
Sometimes you just can't stop the inevitable. Just take the SARS outbreak, it was so sudden. People were infected without them knowing. I wonder if that can happen to me.
It's not just about me being infected. It's also about me passing it to my loved ones. Are they at risk just because they are with me? If that is so, then I must protect myself even more because I want to protect them too.
But imagine living in constant fear. Always wondering if the doorknob you just touched had MRSA, wondering if the patient's bed has VRE, wondering if the air you breathe has mycobacterium.
I guess the best thing to do is to follow protocol and not to cut corners. Time is tight but protecting yourself is still more important. The hospital is a dangerous place to be in, as infections are bountiful. But this comes with the job of a healthcare worker and we just have to deal with it.
Wei Qiang converses @ 19:08
2 Comments:
i thk as long as u're careful enough and wearing gloves while drawing blood, u r safe. and if pt is a suspected case of TB, u should ve worn ur mask already. so i thk as long as precaution measures r taken, den u r safe.
yes, i agree dat all occupations have it's advantages and disadvantages...so sometimes it also depends on ur luck...
well, my 2 step mantoux has proven my status as a latent TB infected. so too late for TB precautions. haiz...
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