cold/flu/gloves/handwashing

[worknnurse]

Ok, so this is the first time I've ever done anything like this!!.. (Bear with me).. I'm a nurse in a county jail in Ohio. We have roughly about 300 Inmates.

Anyway I've been @ the jail now 2yrs. I Love my job but I had a baffling question askd me the last week and I wanted some info.. there have been an Overwhelming ammount of sick calls lately and I addressed every pod about the importance of Handwashing that everyone needed to be sure they were frequently washing their hands because they're ALL sick, passing this cold thing around. So the next day I had a few people refuse their meds because I was not wearing gloves.... Hmmm ok. So Now I'm wondering how many of you wear gloves during Pill Call? Everywhere else I have been No other nurse wore gloves @ med pass unless it was G-Tube, Injections, or IV administration. Never to just pass pills. Am I wrong? Do I need to glove up?!

[katkonk, BSN, RN]

Hmmm...I am wondering whether you meant sick calls by staff, or by inmates. Anyway, while handwashing is very important, the cold and flu viruses are spread by air droplets, and everyone throughout the nation is sick right now. This means visitors, c/o's, everyone is helping to bring this bad bug inside now. Re: whether to wear gloves on med pass or not, some do, some do not, but not a bad idea, if your hands do not get too sweaty in the period of time it takes to do medpass. Re: them refusing their meds-well, they are just yanking your chain. They will seize upon anything to have an excuse to buck authority, including refusing meds.