The financial cost of sharps injuries

Abstract

Research into sharps injuries has focused on the volume of incidents and, to a smaller degree, the psychological impact of those incidents. This narrative literature review instead explored the financial cost of sharps injuries as reported by both UK and international studies. This involved a search of 13 electronic databases and grey literature, with no set date limits, in June 2019. Both direct and indirect costs of sharps injuries were identified, indicating the high financial costs of such incidents to healthcare systems across many different countries each year. Further research is urgently needed to address the continued prevalence of sharps injuries and to reduce the associated costs.