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Exposure concern in HIV hospital ward
I live in a deveoping country in Eastern Europe and the only place I could get PEP was from an HiV/Infectious diseases hospital. Yes, we have such place here, where infected people get treatment.
Following a concern re me giving oral to an unknown man, I went to that HIV hospital to get the rest of my PEP medication - they had only given me half of medication- and they had me do a blood draw there.
In the waiting room were people who were actually ill, patients in the hospital (people with HIV, hepatitis, TBC, etc) and I felt incredibly sad because some of them were actually very thin, very ill and some were even in pain. Trully, one must see such a place to ubderstand the shock.
I thought of running out of there l, as I was literally panicked, but then I needed the rest of PEP medication. My turn to get my blood drawn came right after one of these patients finished having his own blood drawn.
So I took his place in the chair and then the nurse showed me the sealed needle.
But then she proceeded to feel my vein WITHOUT GLOVES AND WITHOUT WASHING HER HANDS after the prior patient.
I didn’t have time to react as she punctured my vein. What she also did - and realized until it was too late for me to say anything - was that SHE PLACED THE COTTON BALL DIRECTLY ON THE ARM OF THE CHAIR where I was sitting, right next to my elbow , EXACTLY WHERE THE PRIOR PATIENT ‘s ELBOW har rested two minutes before.
After she finished drawing blood, the nurse grabbed that piece of cottog off the arm of the chair and swipped my puncture. Then, with the same ungloved hands she unsealed a small bandate and placed it on my still bleeding puncture wound.
The whole experince felt unreal in the worst way and I asked the nurse if there is any risk from the way she proceed. She immediately got upset, she told me she does this all day and she expedited me.
The whole operation in that waiting room felt like I traveled back in time (I used to live in States for two decades) and left there in shock.
Anyway, had this not happened in an actual HIV ward, I would have dismissed the whole thing. But since I had my blood drawn right after an HIV patient I find myself myself now filled with more anxiety than even a few days before. I feel like I’m going from bad to worse, mistake after mistake.
Would you be so kind again to please advise on whether there was any possible exposure from all this s experience - from the unwashed hands, from the cotton placed right where the prior patient’s blood had been drawn? Does the fact that all happenee in a HIV environment makes it riskier?
Gratefully, thank you.
Following a concern re me giving oral to an unknown man, I went to that HIV hospital to get the rest of my PEP medication - they had only given me half of medication- and they had me do a blood draw there.
In the waiting room were people who were actually ill, patients in the hospital (people with HIV, hepatitis, TBC, etc) and I felt incredibly sad because some of them were actually very thin, very ill and some were even in pain. Trully, one must see such a place to ubderstand the shock.
I thought of running out of there l, as I was literally panicked, but then I needed the rest of PEP medication. My turn to get my blood drawn came right after one of these patients finished having his own blood drawn.
So I took his place in the chair and then the nurse showed me the sealed needle.
But then she proceeded to feel my vein WITHOUT GLOVES AND WITHOUT WASHING HER HANDS after the prior patient.
I didn’t have time to react as she punctured my vein. What she also did - and realized until it was too late for me to say anything - was that SHE PLACED THE COTTON BALL DIRECTLY ON THE ARM OF THE CHAIR where I was sitting, right next to my elbow , EXACTLY WHERE THE PRIOR PATIENT ‘s ELBOW har rested two minutes before.
After she finished drawing blood, the nurse grabbed that piece of cottog off the arm of the chair and swipped my puncture. Then, with the same ungloved hands she unsealed a small bandate and placed it on my still bleeding puncture wound.
The whole experince felt unreal in the worst way and I asked the nurse if there is any risk from the way she proceed. She immediately got upset, she told me she does this all day and she expedited me.
The whole operation in that waiting room felt like I traveled back in time (I used to live in States for two decades) and left there in shock.
Anyway, had this not happened in an actual HIV ward, I would have dismissed the whole thing. But since I had my blood drawn right after an HIV patient I find myself myself now filled with more anxiety than even a few days before. I feel like I’m going from bad to worse, mistake after mistake.
Would you be so kind again to please advise on whether there was any possible exposure from all this s experience - from the unwashed hands, from the cotton placed right where the prior patient’s blood had been drawn? Does the fact that all happenee in a HIV environment makes it riskier?
Gratefully, thank you.
Nothing you've posted is a risk for HIV. In an adult, the only way you can be infected is by unprotected anal/vaginal sex or by sharing drug needles with infected users. Neither of those things happened in your story, therefore you're fine and have no exposure to HIV.
1 Comments
You should throw away the rest of the PEP. Serious problems can occur with PEP and as Chima mentioned there is ZERO reason for you to take it.
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