Health and safety during clinical practices and pre-graduation internships of students training to become a nurse

INTRODUCTION. Damaged health, injuries and illnesses related to the workplace, are causes of immense human suffering. Safety is essential during the working process or the ongoing training. Each participant in the therapy and health care has a responsibility to comply with the measures for healthy and safe working conditions. During their training, students in the Nurse program are part of this process and have an obligation and responsibility to the patients, the staff and themselves to ensure healthy and safe working conditions.AIM: The aim of the present study is to explore the knowledge about the safety of students in the Nurse program at the Medical University of Varna, during clinical practice and internship before graduating.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This paper examines the opinions of 146 of the total 205 students from 1st to 4th year in the Nurse program at the Medical University of Varna. The study was conducted by direct anonymous questionnaire for the period from January to March, 2016. Analysis of literature sources and a questionnaire method were used. The data were processed by statistical and graphical analysis.RESULTS: The opinion of the respondents is firm regarding the need for protective equipment during clinical practice and internship before graduating. A significant part of the students cited as the most frequent incidents: contamination of the skin with blood and body fluids, followed by pricks from sharp objects (needles), as well as aggression by patients. The analysis of the results shows that more than a half of the surveyed students are familiar with the regulations for the protection of medical personnel in an accident