EPINet Global Resource Center
EPINet: A global resource for occupational sharps injury & blood and body fluid exposure recordkeeping & surveillance
Here you will find the tools you need to download, implement and maintain the EPINet/Access Sharps Injury and Blood Exposure Surveillance Program--whether at an individual hospital or healthcare facility, in a group of facilities, or at a regional or national level.
- EPINet is in 83 countries and has been translated into 21 languages.
- Arabic and Russian versions now available
- What can you do with EPINet?
- How can you order EPINet?
- EPINet for OR/Access (surgical setting)
- Technical support for EPINet
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EPINet: Frequently Asked Questions
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About the EPINet Sharps
Injury and Blood And Body Fluid Exposure Surveillance Research
Group
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Data reports from
the U.S. EPINet Sharps Injury and Blood and Body Fluid Exposure
Surveillance Research Group (including annual sharps
injury rates and BBF exposure rates)
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EPINet versions by country
or language:
U.S. EPINet EPINet versions by country EPINet versions by language
Note: The EPINetTM for Access® program is copyrighted and may not be altered without permission of the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center. EPINet is a trademark of the University of Virginia. Access is a registered trademark of the Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
The EPINet Sharps Injury and Blood Exposure Surveillance Program was developed by Dr. Janine Jagger in 1991 to provide a standardized methodology for tracking percutaneous injuries and blood and body fluid contacts. Since then, it has been widely adopted in the United States and many other countries -- by individual hospitals, networks of hospitals, and, in some cases, by national governments as an official surveillance program. EPINet has been translated into many languages and is available for use free of charge.
The EPINet system consists of a Needlestick and Sharp Object Injury Report form and a Blood and Body Fluid Exposure Report form, and software programmed in Access®* for entering and analyzing the data from the forms. (A post-exposure follow-up form is also available.)
- Identify injuries that may be prevented with safer medical devices, protective equipment, and/or work practices.Share and compare information and successful prevention measures with other institutions -- and other countries.
- Evaluate the efficacy of safety-engineered devices designed to prevent injuries.
- Target high-risk devices and procedures for intervention.
- Analyze injury frequencies by attributes like jobs, devices, and procedures.
- Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual exposure reports.
- How can you order EPINet?
- The EPINet for Access software program is available free of charge by contacting Ginger Parker, EPINet Program Coordinator for the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center:
E-mail: gingerparker@virginia.edu
Phone: (434) 982-0702
- The EPINet software can be sent as an e-mail attachment.
- The U.S. EPINet report forms and user manual can be downloaded from this site are available below.
- EPINet-OR
EPINet-OR/Access is a version of EPINet designed specifically for the surgical setting. It is suitable for both inpatient and outpatient surgical settings as well as labor and delivery suites. To obtain a copy of the program, click here . For more information, e-mail gingerparker@virginia.edu .
- Technical support for
EPINet
The International Healthcare Worker Safety Center offers free technical support for EPINet users. For EPINet-related questions, contact Ginger Parker, the Center's EPINet coordinator and data analyst:
E-mail: gingerparker@virginia.edu
Phone: 1-434-982-0702
- EPINet:
Frequently Asked Questions
How are percutaneous injury rates calculated? What denominator should be used?
◊ About the EPINet Sharps Injury and Blood And Body Fluid Exposure Surveillance Research Group
In 1992, Dr. Janine Jagger of the University of Virginia organized a voluntary data-sharing network of healthcare facilities using EPINet--the "EPINet Research Group." Participating healthcare facilities from across the United States annually send data to the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center; these data are merged into an aggregate database. With 15 years of data from a cumulative total of 84 hospitals, it is the longest-standing database of healthcare workers' at-risk exposures to blood and body fluids in the U.S. These data are the foundation of the Center's research, and provide important support for policies to improve healthcare worker safety. Data from the EPINet Research Group may be accessed here. A list of healthcare facilities that have contributed data to the research group is here.
◊ EPINet versions by country and language
- EPINet versions (other than U.S.), by country/global
region*
Key:
SOI = Needlestick and Sharp-Object Injury Report
BBF = Blood and Body Fluid Report
PEF = Post-Exposure Follow-up Report
- Africa (English): SOI, BBF, PEF
- Australia/New Zealand: SOI, BBF, PEF
- Belgium:
French version: SOI, BBF, PEF
Dutch version: SOI, BBF, PEF- Canada
English version: SOI, BBF, PEF
French version: SOI, BBF, PEF- Czech Republic: SOI, BBF, PEF
- Democratic Republic of Congo (French): SOI, BBF, PEF
- Netherlands (The): SOI, BBF, PEF
EPINet-OR, Polish translation:
SOI, BBF, PEF
- EPINet versions, by language*:
Key:
SOI = Needlestick and Sharp-Object Injury Report
BBF = Blood and Body Fluid Report
PEF = Post-Exposure Follow-up Report- Chinese: SOI, BBF, PEF
(for Chinese versions adapted for use in Taiwan and Hong Kong, see above)- Dutch
Belgium: SOI, BBF, PEF
The Netherlands: SOI, BBF, PEF- English
Australia: SOI, BBF, PEF
Canada: SOI, BBF, PEF
U.S.: SOI, BBF, PEF
U.K.: SOI, BBF, PEF- French:
France: SOI, BBF
Belgium: SOI, BBF, PEF
Democratic Republic of Congo: SOI, BBF, PEF- Spanish: SOI, BBF, PEF
Argentina: SOI, BBF, PEF
Chile: SOI, BBF, PEF
Mexico: SOI, BBF, PEF
Spain: SOI, BBF
Uruguay: SOI, BBF, PEF
Venezuela: SOI, BBF, PEF
*NOTE: If your country or language is not represented on this list, and you are interested in adapting EPINet for use in your country, please contact the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center's EPINet Program Coordinator, Ginger Parker, at gingerparker@virginia.edu, or contact the Center here.
