How does overuse of injections lead to the transmission of blood-borne pathogens?
The more injections are given, the more people are exposed to needles and syringes. In addition, if the use of injections exceeds the availability of injection equipment allows, re-use of syringes and needles is likely to occur. Therefore the greater the use, the higher the risk. What are the reasons for injection overuse? • In the case of curative injections, patients and healthcare workers often believe that injections are more effective and act faster than oral medication. In addition, injections allow healthcare workers to control the intake of a given medication (better compliance with treatment regimens), and sometimes, to charge an increased fee for service. • In the case of vaccination injections, there is a lack of combination and oral vaccines to be used to decrease the number of vaccination injections. Are healthcare workers not aware of the risks of unsafe injection practices? In many cases trained healthcare workers such as physicians, nurses, and paramedical staff have no
