A study, published in the American Journal of Infection Control, examined provider knowledge, attitudes and practices related to unsafe injection practices.
Researchers from the CDC recruited 370 physicians and 320 nurses from eight states to complete an online survey. The questions assessed acceptability and frequency of unsafe practices, such as reusing a syringe on more than one patient.
Survey results show unsafe injection practices take place across all surveyed physician specialties and nurse practice locations. Around 12.4 percent of physicians and 3 percent of nurses indicated syringes were reused for more than one patient in their workplace. Nearly 5 percent of physicians indicated this practice "usually or always occurs."
"There is a dangerous minority of providers violating basic standards of care; practice patterns may vary by provider group and specialty," study authors concluded.