Analysis of needlestick injuries to health care workers providing home care.

Background: This research analyzed needlestick injuries sustained by employees working in the home health environment to determine to what extent existing infection control policies and procedures in home health care are effective in reducing the risk of transmission of blood-borne infections.

Methods: In June and July 1992, a random sample of 600 directors of home health care agencies in the United States were sent questionnaires concerning written blood-borne infection control policies and procedures of home health care agencies. Agency characteristics were also identified.

Chest radiography: a survey of techniques and exposure levels currently used.

In diagnostic radiology, the routine measurement of exposure levels for a reference patient is an important part of an effective quality assurance program. In the United States, chest radiography is the most frequent examination and has the lowest exposure level of all radiologic examinations. We estimated the amount of exposure an average patient received from both manual and automatic exposure-controlled radiographic techniques by using a "patient-equivalent" chest phantom during measurements.

Beam quality independent attenuation phantom for estimating patient exposure from x-ray automatic exposure controlled chest examinations.

The periodic assessment of exposures in diagnostic radiology is an important part of a comprehensive quality assurance program. The most frequent radiologic examination conducted in the United States is chest radiography. Automatic exposure controlled (AEC) techniques are often used for this exam, and a standard patient-equivalent chest phantom is useful when estimating patient exposures on such systems.