Occupational Exposures to Biological Fluids – Rethinking Intervention Strategies: a Qualitative Study

Aim: To understand the phenomenon of the experience of an accident with biological fluids according to the nursing staff, with a view to reorganizing the work process. Method: This is a qualitative study using the approach of existential phenomenology. Eight nursing workers who had accidents with biological fluids answered the guiding question: "How was your experience of having had an accident with biological fluids?” Their comments were analyzed according to the existential philosophy framework of Martin Heidegger. Results: The analysis revealed two categories: "'Being-in-the-world', experiencing an accident with biological fluids" and "Transcendence through work reorganization," which describe the experience of the nursing workers who had accidents with biological fluids, in addition to the context in which accidents occur, marked by work-overload. Conclusion: The results indicate intervention strategies for the reorganization of the work process, fundamental to the reduction of accidents with biological fluids.