Cover your mouth....the right way!

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Today I went to an urgent care facility to get a physical and drug screen for a new job (finally)! I was completely disgusted when the nurse that was taking my vitals, and testing my urine kept on covering her mouth when she coughed with the palm of her hands. Not to mention, when she dipped the test strip into my cup of urine she didn't put gloves on. YUCK!!!!!!:down: Now, if I am not mistaken, when she coughs into the palm of her hands, and then touches everything around her isn't she just spreading her germs around. So fast forward...when she was about to take my blood pressure and temp, I asked her to wash her hands. This cough sounded like she was about to cough up a lung...it was not pleasant at all. She gave me a look like...."are you serious", and I in turn looked at her like, "I'm waiting". Do you blame me? I would never do this to a potential patient. Everyone in my house including my 2 yr old twins know to cough into their elbow or shoulder. This is not the first time that I have been around healthcare professionals and witnessed them coughing into their hands. What's up with that?

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

That's just nasty!

I not only glove up when I do a dip test, I clean the counter with gloves on with Cavicide afterward.

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Today I went to an urgent care facility to get a physical and drug screen for a new job (finally)! I was completely disgusted when the nurse that was taking my vitals, and testing my urine kept on covering her mouth when she coughed with the palm of her hands. Not to mention, when she dipped the test strip into my cup of urine she didn't put gloves on. YUCK!!!!!!:down: Now, if I am not mistaken, when she coughs into the palm of her hands, and then touches everything around her isn't she just spreading her germs around. So fast forward...when she was about to take my blood pressure and temp, I asked her to wash her hands. This cough sounded like she was about to cough up a lung...it was not pleasant at all. She gave me a look like...."are you serious", and I in turn looked at her like, "I'm waiting". Do you blame me? I would never do this to a potential patient. Everyone in my house including my 2 yr old twins know to cough into their elbow or shoulder. This is not the first time that I have been around healthcare professionals and witnessed them coughing into their hands. What's up with that?
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Specializes in Adult Oncology.

I had a huge argument with my sister (a teacher) about the coughing in the hands vs the elbow thing. I voted elbow. She says hands because then "they get washed". I said "only if you wash them".

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You did great:D ! She needed to wash her hands before touching you:uhoh3: !!!!!!!!

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OMG...come to think of it, she didn't wipe the counter down after she did the dip test, and also poured my urine sample into a smaller cup to be sent out for testing. She was just plain nasty!

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Specializes in NICU.

I SOOOOO agree with you!!! I can't stand seeing people cough or sneeze into their hands. I always use my elbow and my 7 year old has been doing this for years. I saw Doc cover his cough with the chart in his hand - yuck!!!

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Specializes in CRNA, Finally retired.

Urine is sterile. Coughing in your face is pure nasty though. However, if urine was a pathogen, we'd all be dead from changing diapers:).

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Specializes in Gerontology, Med surg, Home Health.

My kids were taught in school more than twenty years ago to always cough and sneeze into their elbows. There is a DVD available called Do It In Your Sleeve. It should be mandatory viewing for any healthcare worker.

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Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

Urine isn't always sterile. Theoretically it's sterile when it's inside the body, but that assumes there's no infection in the UTI. Once it leaves the body, it flows over all sorts of germ-y parts!

ack! ack! ack! about the touching and pouring without gloves and the no wipe-down!

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Specializes in I.C.U,PERIOPERATIVE NURSING,BSN.

aaargh! i feel terrible just reading ur post. this is soooo not right!!!!! very unhygienic and unprofessional. i guess some nurses would require refresher courses in basic hygiene and handwashing. as regards the urine specimen. standard precautions practices require that we take extra care by gloving . when handling body fluids.

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