Instructions for needle-stick injuries among students

Needle-stick and blood contact injuries refer to situations where a needle or instrument contaminated with blood or other bodily fluids punctures the skin.

First aid

• Do not press or rub the wound / puncture site.
• Rinse the site with plenty of running water for at least 5 minutes.
• Let the site bleed, and remove any foreign bodies.
• Place an alcohol swab on the site for 2 minutes (e.g. hand disinfectant containing over 70% alcohol)

After the first aid outlined above for needle-stick and blood contact injuries

• Contact the student healthcare service to obtain a referral for blood samples and more instructions on what to do.
• If the injury occurred outside service hours, the samples must be taken on the next weekday (within two days). If this is not possible (e.g. it’s a Friday night), the samples must be taken at an emergency clinic.
• The needle-stick injury samples will be taken from the patient (the source) and the student (the target).
• Sampling and data disclosure to the student healthcare service require permission from the patient.
• The internship institution where the injury occured is reponsible of scheduling blood testing of the source and evaluating necessary further steps.
• Blood sampling from the source and disclosure of necessary information to the party managing the situation require permission from the patient.

Notification of injury by the educational institution

• Students complete the notification of injury electronically. The link to the notification form and the insurance numbers can be found on the website of your educational institution. If necessary, contact the person in your educational institution responsible for your practical training.

Insurance taken out by the educational institution

• The insurance taken out by your educational institution will cover the healthcare costs due to the injury in situations involving a suspected risk of transmission of an infectious disease. Such situations include the following:
• The source (the patient) is known to carry an infectious disease.
• The risk of infection is evident based on the medical history of the source (the patient).
• The materials at work involve a risk of blood-borne infections.

Educational institutions must submit a certificate of insurance in the above situations. The certificate can be submitted afterwards if necessary.

Please note that if the injury occurred during employment, you are covered by your workplace accident insurance.