Needle sheathing device

Figure I -7 A, Convenient needle disposal system for sharps. B, Needle sheathing devices for prevention of body contact with needle. (6 Courtesy MarketLab inc.)...

The needle stick log will help both employees and employers track all needle sticks to help identify problem areas. The log must be maintained to protect the confidentiality of the injured employee. In addition, employers must have a written Exposure Control Plan that is updated annually. During the annual review, inquiries must be made about new or prospective safer options. If new safer devices are available, they should be adopted for use in the agency. The new guidelines will help reduce needle stick injuries among health care workers and others who handle medical sharps. Safety engineered devices such as self-sheathing needles and needleless systems can be used. 

A microscale SPE technique was developed in 1992 by Janusz Pawliszyn at the University of Waterloo, Ontario Canada. According to J. Berg of Varian Assoc., Walnut Creek, CA, the device shown in Figure 12-11, p. 135, "consists of a holder and a replaceable fiber assembly. The assembled unit looks much like a syringe, but in place of the hollow needle is a fiber inside a protective sheath. The fiber is attached to the holder plunger, so that it may be exposed by moving it out of the sheath. The fiber itself consists of a piece of fused silica rod coated with an adsorbent. 

Syringes whichre-sheathe the needle,needle-less sy stems, and othersafe devices should be used when appropriate. 

Employers should take appropriate preventative measures against occupational exposure. These include engineering controls and work practice controls. Examples of engineering controls include biohazard hoods, puncture-resistant sharps containers, mechanical pipette devices, and other devices that permanently remove the hazard or isolate individuals from exposure. Organizations must evaluate and incorporate new safer devices including needleless devices, needles with sheaths, and blunt suture needles. Work practice controls must include hand washing policies, sharps handling procedures, proper waste disposal techniques, and other actions that would reduce the likelihood of exposure. 

Bloodborne pathogens engineering controls—Sharps disposal containers, self-sheathing needles, safer medical devices, such as sharps with engineered sharps injnry protections and needleless systems that isolate or remove the bloodborne pathogens hazard from the workplace. 

Passive devices (fully automatic) the safety mechanism is integral to the device design, requiring no any additional actions by the user to activate the safety feature. For example, self-sheathing needle. 

The combination of the electrospray ion source with HPLC has without a doubt become the LC/MS interface in recent years. It is a particularly powerful combination, since this ionization technique covers a wide range of samples [38] that are commonly separated by HPLC [39] or electrophoresis [40]-[44]. The ESI source exhibits concentration-dependent behavior and thus gives optimal signals at most flow rates. The principle of the ionization process is discussed in Section 20.4.9. The most important feature of this interface is aspray needle which can be connected directly to the separation column, if the flow rates are compatible. Initially the major limitation was that only low flow rates (a few pL/min) could be used, but now flow rates of 1 mL/min or more are possible by using heated sprayers or ultrasonic devices. Splitting of the flow is possible as well, allowing two detectors to be used simultaneously. Since buffers can be used as long as they are volatile and not too concentrated, a sheath flow... 

In this technique, an inert hher is coated with an adsorbent (several choices). The adsorbent-coated fiber is placed in the headspace of a sample, or the sample itself if liquid, and allowed to adsorb volatiles. The loaded fiber is then thermally desorbed into a GC carrier gas flow, and the released volatiles are analyzed. A schematic of the device is presented in Figure 3.8. The coated fiber is a modified syringe where the needle is retractable into an outer sheath. The retractable feature affords protection to the fiber against physical damage and contamination. SPME is an equilibrium technique, and therefore the volatile profile one obtains is strongly... 

In the healthcare industry, employers must evaluate, select, and use appropriate safer medical devices, such as self-sheathing needles or needleless systems. 

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