[A survey of accidents during the clinical rotation of students in a nursing degree program]

Abstract

Like Registered Nurses, students too should be considered a risk category during the period of their clinical training. Their lack of experience and the anxiety linked to the first impact with healthcare techniques may lead to accidents. The present study aims to investigate the number, the type, the mode, the cause of occupational injuries, when and where they happened. It also wants to check the level of knowledge of procedures to follow in case of contamination with organic material, the reporting of the event, the level of concern felt by the student and which of the people he/she turned to were supportive. The survey realized through a questionnaire given to 142 undergraduate nursing students at the University of Milan, all attending the Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan. Out of the 127 who replied to the questionnaire, 32 had been directly involved in a total of 38 accidents. The figure shows percentage (25.2%) stating that the sample of nursing students described arises at a lower level of involvement in accidents than reported in the literature for similar series. Preventive measures and specific formative interventions should be implemented in order to reduce the incidence of accidents involving nursing students, especially where cutting devices are used.