Health: Needlestick Injuries

Lord McKenzie of Luton Excerpts

Tuesday 12th June 2012 Lords Chamber

[Lord Freud]

My Lords, I am not aware of underreporting. The reporting figures are actually rather low. In the past decade, fewer than 10 people have reported getting infected from being hit by a needle or other sharp object. Usually the infection, particularly more recently, is hepatitis B or C.

[Lord McKenzie of Luton]

My Lords, in March last year the Government set out their plans for reform of the health and safety system in Britain, and these included reductions in inspections. The document they published talked about:

“Areas of concern but where proactive inspection is unlikely to be effective and is not proposed”,

which included the health and social care sector. On what basis was that judgment made?

[Lord Freud]

The judgment was made on the basis of the number of injuries or incidents. Industries with a higher proportion of these were clearly ones on which one would target scarce resources. As I have just explained, the declared figures for injuries from sharps with infection are that 100,000 people a year cut themselves. However, the real concern is how many are infected, and that number is rather low.