Temporal Trends in Needlestick and Sharp Injury Incidence Rates During the COVID-19 Pandemic in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Korea.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the healthcare workforce. This study aimed to compare needlestick and sharp injuries (NSIs) incidence between the pre-pandemic period and the pandemic period and to assess how hospital responses influenced NSI incidence among healthcare workers. METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital designated for COVID-19 management. We compared the incidence of NSIs before (2017-2019) and after (2020-2022) the pandemic onset. The incidence, expressed as cases per 100 full-time equivalents (FTEs) per year, was analyzed using generalized linear regression with interrupted time series analysis based on the Prais-Winsten model. RESULTS: Hospital admissions (7.63%) and surgeries (7.01%) declined in the first pandemic year and continued to decrease, whereas the workforce steadily increased. A total of 844 NSIs were reported, with 475 (56.3%) before the pandemic and 369 (43.7%) during the pandemic. The overall NSI incidence (per 100 FTEs/year) declined both immediately after the outbreak (from 5.78 in 2019 to 4.58 in 2020, P = 0.530) and throughout the pandemic (from 4.58 in 2020 to 3.89 in 2022, P = 0.756). By occupation, incidence among nurses significantly decreased immediately after the outbreak (from 7.6 in 2019 to 5.2 in 2020, P = 0.035). Of the 369 NSIs during the pandemic, most occurred in non-COVID-19 care areas, with only 9 cases (2.4%) in COVID-19 care areas. CONCLUSION: Our study observed a declining trend in NSI incidence during the COVID-19 pandemic, likely related to reduced hospitalizations, adequate staffing, optimized patient contact and infection control measures.