Table 2.
Circumstances of the exposure incident for the period before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
| Characteristic | The results | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The entire observed period | Before the pandemic | During the pandemic | ||
| Month of injury, N (%) | January | 20 (8) | 8 (6.3) | 12 (11) |
| February | 18 (7) | 10 (8) | 8 (7.1) | |
| March | 19 (8) | 14 (11) | 5 (4.4) | |
| April | 10 (4) | 4 (3.1) | 6 (5.3) | |
| May | 17 (7) | 7 (5.5) | 10 (9) | |
| June | 19 (8) | 17 (13) | 2 (1.8) | |
| July | 27 (11) | 19 (15) | 8 (7.1) | |
| August | 12 (5) | 8 (6.3) | 4 (3.5) | |
| September | 20 (8) | 10 (8) | 10 (9) | |
| October | 22 (9) | 6 (4.7) | 16 (14) | |
| November | 30 (12) | 15 (12) | 15 (13) | |
| December | 27 (11) | 10 (8) | 17 (15) | |
| What time did the exposure incident occur, N (%) | First shift (6 AM – 2 PM) | 173 (72) | 101 (79) | 72 (64) |
| Second shift (2 PM − 10 PM) | 42 (17) | 19 (15) | 23 (20) | |
| Third shift (10 PM – 6 AM) | 23 (10) | 6 (4.7) | 17 (15) | |
| On-call (24 h) | 3 (1.2) | 2 (1.6) | 1 (0.9) | |
| How long the employee was at work at the time of the exposure incident, median (range) | 4 (0–18) | 4 (0.5–15) | 3 (0–18) | |
| Personal protective equipment used at the time of the exposure incident, N (%) | Gloves | 212 (88) | 105 (82) | 107 (95) |
| Surgical mask | 109 (45) | 0 | 60 (53) | |
| Prescription glasses | 32 (13) | 12 (9) | 20 (18) | |
| Goggles/visor | 50 (21) | 4 (3.1) | 46 (41) | |
| Linen coat/cloak | 50 (21) | 26 (20) | 24 (21) | |
| PVC coat/cloak | 31 (13) | 6 (4.7) | 25 (22) | |
| Respirator mask | 17 (8) | 0 | 17 (15) | |
| Protective suit | 9 (3.7) | 0 | 9 (8) | |
| Surgical cap | 8 (3.3) | 3 (2.3) | 5 (4.5) | |
| Nothing | 17 (7.1) | 17 (13) | 0 | |
| The object with which the exposure incident occurred, N (%) | Needle | 181 (75) | 88 (69) | 93 (82) |
| Scalpel | 21 (9) | 13 (10) | 8 (7.1) | |
| Tweezers | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.8) | 0 | |
| The rest | 38 (16) | 26 (20) | 12 (11) | |
| During which activity did the exposure incident occur, N (%) | Blood extractions | 47 (20) | 27 (22) | 20 (18) |
| Giving an injection | 49 (20) | 15 (12) | 34 (31) | |
| Administering an infusion | 4 (1.7) | 1 (0.8) | 3 (2.7) | |
| Surgical procedure | 48 (20) | 37 (29) | 11 (10) | |
| In the laboratory | 6 (2.5) | 4 (3.1) | 2 (1.8) | |
| The rest | 75 (31) | 38 (30) | 37 (33) | |
| Placement of peripheral cannula | 12(5) | 6 (4.7) | 6 (5.3) | |
| Type of injury, N (%) | Prick | 199 (83) | 102 (80) | 97 (86) |
| Tax | 13 (5) | 6 (4.7) | 7 (6.2) | |
| Scratch | 7 (3) | 4 (3.1) | 3 (2.7) | |
| A bite | 2 (0.8) | 2 (1.6) | 0 | |
| Splashing in the eyes | 11 (5) | 7 (5.5) | 4 (3.5) | |
| Spray in the mouth | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.8) | 0 | |
| Spray on apparently intact skin | 5 (2.1) | 3 (2.3) | 2 (1.8) | |
| Spray on obviously damaged skin | 3 (1.2) | 3 (2.3) | 0 | |
| The rest | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Biological material with which there was contact, N (%) | Blood | 187 (78) | 96 (75) | 91 (81) |
| Serum | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saliva | 5 (2.1) | 2 (1.6) | 3 (2.7) | |
| Tears | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Stool | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Urine | 2 (0.8) | 2 (1.6) | 0 | |
| The rest | 17 (8) | 13 (10) | 4 (3.5) | |
| Unknown | 27 (11) | 15(12) | 12 (11) | |
| There is no data | 3 (1.2) | 0 | 3 (2.7) | |