Occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens remains an important and largely
preventable issue in hospital practice. This article argues that formal training can increase …

Background. Blood specimen collection is a common procedure in health care, and the
results from specimen analysis have essential influence on clinical decisions. Errors in …

Aims and objectives To investigate the association between confidence level in
venepuncture and knowledge in determining causes of blood sample haemolysis among …

A questionnaire survey was conducted amongst Birmingham, UK, medical students in March
1998 to study the practice of venepuncture, the frequency of needlestick injuries and …

Objective: To determine how switching to a sterile needle after phlebotomy and before the
inoculation of blood culture bottles affects the rate of skin flora contamination. Design: A …

According to OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen Standard (OSHA, 1991) contaminated sharps
are not to be removed from blood collection devices (ie, tube holders) unless required by the …

Bruising after venepuncture is undesirable. To verify an apparent increase in bruising after
introducing a new venepuncture system in a small district general hospital and to improve …

In 2001, there were an estimated 9.2 million individuals working in healthcare in the United
States. 1 Despite the use of standard precautions and the introduction of safety-engineered …

Background Haemolysis is defined as the release of cellular components of erythrocytes
and other blood cells into the extracellular space of blood. These cellular components can …

Editor's Note: This article is the fourth in the series “Focus on Phlebotomy” published in
HHN. Part 1 (March 2002, pp. 151-153) provided a general overview of preparing for the …