In line with the Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013 and as agreed at February 2020 Hertfordshire Medicines Management Committee where a safety needle is required by a healthcare worker, this should be provided by the health care workers’ employer. Therefore, healthcare organisations should ensure that they have processes in place to source safety needles for use by their employees.
Implication
- Therefore, if a nurse (e.g. district nurse / nursing home) is injecting the insulin they would be expected to bring their own safety needles.
- From 1st May the Trust who employ community nurses will provide the safety needles that they require to keep them safe. Care homes will no longer need to request them from GPs and GPs will be advised not to prescribe.
Safety needles:
- Safety needles should NOT be prescribed on FP10 for use by healthcare professionals and employees; it is the employer’s responsibility to provide them.
- Safety needles which incorporate automatic safety locks should be used by all healthcare professionals and by all employees in the healthcare sector when administering insulin to patients.
- Safety needles CAN be prescribed on FP10 for use for patients whose insulin is administered by a non-professional healthcare worker, e.g. carer
- Click here for information on safety needles from Herts and West Essex ICB
- Click here for CQC guidance on handling sharps in adult social care
- Click here for information on sharps injuries from the Health and Safety Executive
References:
- NHSE: Items which should not be routinely prescribed in primary care
- Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013. Guidance for employers and employees: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/hsis7.pdf