Bioterrorism In the Making

I was chatting with a retail assistant (RA) from the main pharmacy last week when I heard about a horrifying incident. The RA was checking the stocks on the shop floor when she noticed this elderly patient standing near the shelves selling syringes and needles for diabetes use. As the patient looked a little suspicious the RA decided to observe her.

If you were thinking that the patient tried stealing the needles you were wrong. She did something even more terrible. Whilst still keeping the syringes in the packet, the patient twisted off the cap of the syringe to expose the needle and then proceed to poke the needle through the plastic package and then her finger to test the needle. After that she capped the needle and was about to place the packet back on the shelf when the RA approached her, telling her she had to buy the packet of syringes as she had already "tried" one of them. In fact blood was present on the packet and the patient's pricked finger.

According to the RA this was not an isolated incident and one of the cashier actually had a needle stick injury as a result. What I do not understand is why the patients do such things. Have they any idea the implication of trying needles?! If a HIV/ hepatitis B carrier tried the needles and placed them back for another to buy, that person would have become infected and not because he/she is at fault. Rather it is due to the sheer stupidity of a fellow human being.

My take on this: if you ever need to buy needles, buy the full box. Make sure the box is sealed with no tampering. Better to waste the money than to waste your life.