(2004/C 78 E/0952)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-4041/03

by John Bowis (PPE-DE) and Ria Oomen-Ruijten (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(12 January 2004)

Subject:   The implementation of worker safety directives and protection of healthcare workers and their patients

It is estimated that 1 million needlestick injuries occur in Europe each year. Between 60 and 80 % of these go unreported.

Studies show that a combination of training, safer working practices and the use of medical devices incorporating needlestick protection technology can prevent a large number of these potentially fatal injuries.

Every day Europe's healthcare workers are exposed to potentially fatal blood-borne pathogens, including hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV, resulting from needlestick and other medical ‘sharps’ injuries.

Does the Commission agree that action needs to be taken in the form of the provision of specific EU guidelines to ensure consistent implementation of effective measures to prevent needlestick and other medical ‘sharps’ injuries across Europe?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(13 February 2004)

The Commission considers the protection of the health and safety of healthcare workers to be extremely important.

Directive 2000/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work (1) contains provisions designed to prevent these workers from the risk of becoming infected, and lays down minimum requirements in this area.

The Directive sets out employers' obligations in terms of risk prevention. For example, in the case of any activity likely to involve a risk of exposure to biological agents, the nature, degree and duration of workers' exposure must be determined in order to make it possible to assess any risk to the workers' health or safety and to lay down the measures to be taken. It is up to Member States to implement the provisions of the Directive.

The objective of Council Directive 89/655/EEC of 30 November 1989 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for the use of work equipment by workers at work (2) is to guarantee a better standard of safety for workers in the use of work equipment, such as medical equipment used in hospitals. The employer must select the work equipment to be used on the basis of the specific working conditions and the risks for workers, in order to eliminate or minimise these risks. Where it is not possible to use work equipment which does not pose a risk to workers' health and safety, the employer must minimise this risk. Workers must also be provided with adequate instructions and training on the use of work equipment.

At Community level, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work is developing specific measures in the healthcare sector. Various information on health and safety at work in the healthcare sector, and in particular on the prevention of injuries from needles or other sharp instruments, is available on the Agency's website (3). Important information includes guidelines on the prevention of needle injuries, examples of good practice, and studies and recommendations in this area, from the Member States, from other European countries and from outside Europe.

The Commission analyses constantly the situation regarding the prevention of health and safety risks for workers in all sectors, including the healthcare sector. Should its analysis reveal the need to develop new Community instruments in this particular area, the Commission would not hesitate to propose the appropriate measures.

(1)  OJ L 262, 17.10.2000.

(2)  OJ L 393, 30.12.1989 (as amended by Directive 95/63/EC, OJ L 335, 30.12.1995, and Directive 2001/45/EC, OJ L 195, 19.7.2001).

(3)  http://europe.osha.eu.int/good_practice/sector/healthcare/fr/indexbytopic.phphttp://europe.osha.eu.int/good_practice/sector/healthcare/fr/indexbytopic11.php?id=274