A number of serious infectious disease outbreaks have occurred when unsafe injection practices were used. All of these cases were preventable.
Unsafe injection practices:
(1) Failing to follow aseptic technique with contamination of sterile injection supplies.
(2) Failing to follow proper practices when preparing and handling materials for injection.
(3) Using a single syringe to inject medication to more than one patient (even if changing needles).
(4) Administering a drug from a single-dose vial or ampule to more than one patient.
(5) Combining residual fluid from multiple drug vials.
(6) Failure to disinfect the septum of a medication vial with alcohol prior to piercing.
(7) Failing to use a sterile needle or cannula when entering a multiple dose vial.
(8) Using a fluid infusion and administration for more than one patient.
(9) Failing to discard a drug vial or syringe if sterility is compromised or questionable.
(10) Failing to take adequate precautions (mask, sterile gloves) when placing a catheter or injecting material into the spinal canal or subdural space.
Additional recommendations:
(1) Do not store multidose vials in the immediate patient treatment area.
(2) Store vials in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.
(3) Use single-dose vials for parenteral administration whenever possible. Multi-dose vials should be dedicated to an individual patient whenever possible.
