If you handle a used needle or condom properly, there is no health risk. Teach children never to touch condoms or needles that they find, and to ask an adult for help.
School Board staff should contact their Safety and Health Department for more information on how to get and handle sharps containers. Care providers can get hard-sided sharps containers at most drug stores, and there may be a charge.
Drug stores will accept sealed, used sharps containers for disposal at no charge.
In Vancouver and Richmond, there are programs to arrange for pick-up of discarded needles.
Vancouver: call the Needle Pick-up Hotline at (604) 657-6561 or email needlevan@phs.ca
Richmond: call the City Works Yard at (604) 270-8721
For other areas within Vancouver Coastal Health, please contact your local public health office for further guidance.
Call Vancouver Coastal Health Communicable Disease Control at (604)-675-3900 or your local public health office for an assessment and advice. If you cannot reach someone in Public Health, follow the protocol.
What to do in case of an injury or splash happens to a child or staff member in a care centre or school setting.
Print these pages as featured in the guide book, Sneezes & Diseases: A Resource Book for Caregivers & Parents.