Handle with care
25 October, 2010 | Richard P. Grant |
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Healthcare workers face a number of occupational hazards, including physical injuries from lifting heavy items (patients!) and infectious diseases from needleprick injuries and the like.
But the tools of the trade also carry a risk—and a report from J Occup Environ Med highlights the danger of anti-cancer agents to nurses, pharmacists, and people not directly involved but working in close proximity: Evaluation of antineoplastic drug exposure of health care workers at three university-based US cancer centers1.
…despite following safe handling practices and engineering controls, contamination still occurred.
Although no genetic damage was identified in the contaminated individuals, this is obviously a major worry, and better risk management protocols need to be prepared and implemented.
[pullquote]…despite following safe handling practices and engineering controls, contamination still occurred[/pullquote]
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Surprising result. I doubt whether the “… safe handling practices and engineering controls” were really followed.