To Assess the Safe Administration of Injections among Nurses in a Secondary Setting, Uganda

Abstract

Injection safety is important in the prevention of medication errors, infection, needle injuries, and discomfort to patients. The purpose of this study is to assess the steps in the safe administration of injections in a secondary setting in Uganda. A cross-sectional study design was the methodology adopted. Collected data with a non-participatory observational checklist, constructed using WHO - Revised Injection Safety assessment tool C. Permission from the Institutional Board and individual oral consent from nurses was obtained. Seventy-five procedures (intravenous, intradermal, intramuscular, and subcutaneous) were observed in four steps: prevention of infection, safety measures to prevent errors, promoting patient safety and comfort, and prevention of needle-stick injuries. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis. The intravenous injection was the most common procedure observed in this study. Nurses had moderate scores in the safe administration of injections. There was statistical significance seen between certain selected variables and steps of safe administration.