Improve Healthcare Worker Safety | International Safety Center

We’ve made great progress.

Sharps injury prevention programs are working – the injury rate for needlesticks in some hospitals has dropped more than 40%.

Still, we have work to do.

Compared to sharps injuries, blood and body fluid exposures remain high. Healthcare facilities using EPINet, however, are able to identify successes early.

Emerging infectious diseases deliver a critical warning.

Infectious diseases like Ebola remind us that minimizing occupational exposure to blood and body fluids is critically important to the wellness of healthcare workers.

PPE compliance is crucial.

We may not be doing enough to protect our healthcare workers. Our data, used in new studies on worker safety – including a study published by the Center’s Dr. Mitchell – illustrates that PPE compliance rates are lower than hand hygiene compliance.

Welcome to the International Safety Center.

We are committed to improving occupational safety in healthcare by minimizing exposure to blood and body fluids.

Reduce Exposures

The Exposure Prevention Information Network surveillance system (EPINet) is a standardized system that gives healthcare facilities the tools to:

Track occupational Sharp Object Injuries (SOI) & Blood and Body Fluid (BBF) incidents using our NEW 2018 forms
Prevent occupational injuries and illnesses
Reduce exposures to microorganisms that cause infectious disease, illness, and infection
Reduce costs and improve quality

Learn About EPINet

Support the Center

Hospitals and healthcare facilities seek ways to promote occupational safety and health.

The Center supports those efforts with the tools and expertise needed to reduce exposures to contaminated sharps and blood and body fluids.

Contact us to learn about the exclusive benefits we offer to those contributing to the Center as a sponsor, contributor, or partner.

Support or Donate Now

We Can Help

At the Center, we have expertise in occupational safety and health, epidemiology, infectious disease, infection control, and data analysis. Our staff and faculty are available for the following:

Free Technical Assistance for New and Current EPINet Users
Speaking Engagements
Consultation or Professional Support
Analysis and Statistical Interpretation of EPINet Data

Contact the Center Today

Continuing Education for Healthcare Professionals

The International Safety Center is committed to eliminating occupational illness and infection. To that end, we’re delighted to announce that The Center now offers online courses to ensure healthcare professionals like you remain safe and in compliance.

Learn More

Dr. Amber Mitchell delivering a needlestick prevention presentation

New TDICT Medical Device Evaluation Forms

The Center is thrilled to announce its formal partnership with TDICT. The Training for Development of Innovative Control Technologies (TDICT) Project is a collaborative effort of frontline healthcare workers, product designers, and industrial hygienists dedicated to preventing exposure to blood through better design and evaluation of medical devices and equipment. Visit the newly renovated site and download the Sharps Injury Prevention device evaluation forms today. TDICT forms are built to help your facility comply with the requirements of the OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard.

Visit TDICT Website

Safety & Health News

New! Stanford Medical Center Sharps Safety Doodle Video

Zika Transmitted Via Needlestick in Research Lab

New Reports on Contaminated Sharps Injuries Among Healthcare Workers in Texas: 2013

Using Safer Devices, Following Hierarchy of Controls Can Cut Sharps Injuries

Guest Commentary: Protecting our healthcare workers now

A Retrospect: PPE Use Then and Now

Center News & Press Releases

For the first time, U.S. physicians’ rates of suffering needlesticks and sharps injuries exceeded nurses’ rates

International Safety Center Reveals that 32% of Physicians and Nurses Sustain Exposures to Infectious Disease Due to Unsafe Practices

Sharps Injuries and Exposures to Blood on the Rise: Physicians Now Outpace Nurses in Reported Exposure Incidents

International Safety Center Highlights Pathogen Exposure Risks Faced by Healthcare Workers and Calls for Greater Use of Protective Measures

Grant from B.Braun to Expand EPINet to Include Hazardous Drugs

Safety Center Re-Launch Press Release

New Center Research & Publications

Two new Safety Center collaborations with American Nurse Today! One on the importance of protecting your eyes and one on the impact of insulin injection on sharps injuries.

Splash Safety – Protecting Your Eyes (Part 1), American Nurse Today

Splash Safety – Protecting Your Eyes (Part 2), American Nurse Today

Changing Injury Trends Related to Diabetes and Insulin Injection (Part 1), American Nurse Today

Building Programs to Reduce Sharps Injuries from Insulin Injection (Part 2), American Nurse Today