Safer needles and procedures are mandatory in many state and federal hospitals in the United States following an aggressive 10-year campaign by the country's biggest health unions. The Service Employees International Union and nurses' groups argued that safe procedures and equipment existed but were not being used. The campaign prompted laws requiring safety syringes in 10 states and all federal facilities, and laws are pending in another 15 states. The laws also require the facilities to have staff exposure protocols and keep injury logs. Australia, in comparison, has been a non-event.
Hospitals have protocols, but there is no agitation for the introduction of safety needles.
He points out that the cheapest safety syringes cost about 30 cents compared with six cents for a standard disposable syringe. You won't see it as a widely used thing in this country for a long time. The small threat of litigation by hospital staff meant there was little motivation for hospitals to change over to more expensive systems. The company has orders from American hospitals, emergency services and the military, as well as other countries - many willing to pay up front and wait for delivery, according to Mr Curie. He says the company already had orders for 12 billion one-millimetre retractable syringes which were yet to be released on the market.