Gloves in the hall

Nurses General Nursing

Published

hello everyone,

i need some input from all of you. i work in a hospice center at this time in my career, have always worked in a hospital. i am now the infection control resource nurse here. we had an inicident where a ca got a talking to by a nurse for wearing gloves in the hall on both hands while carrying dirty linen:nono: . the ca stated she was allowed to wear gloves as long as carrying dirty linen. i was always told "no gloves in the hall!" this was beat into my head:trout: over and over. i have heard it was ok if while carrying dirty linens to wear one glove and have one clean hand and one dirty hand.i am trying to research this for my administrator. i have emailed our local dhec and the infection control dept at our local big hospital (where i used to work). what is your input. 2 gloves, 1glove or no gloves and why????

thank you

psss i love all the new smileys

Specializes in med surg, oncology, outpt and hospice.
You know, once or three or so times a shift, if someone weren't completely and utterly overloaded with work, they could pick up some cavicide wipes and go hit the doorknobs, tops of linen carts, etc.

That would be wonderful if someone actually would do it. Ya know.

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Specializes in ICU, telemetry, LTAC.

Well the reason I say it, is I'm usually that someone, but I am often overworked as well and it doesn't get done as often as I would like for it to be done.

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If I need to take something out - I bag it (laundry, biohazard, specimen), tie the bag and take it out.

Just remember, if you touched that bag with dirty gloves, then take your gloves off and take the bag out of the room you need to be careful of what you touch such as doorknobs, computers, etc. I try really hard not to touch the doorknob on our soiled utility room because of this. I am very germ conscious.

I don't wear gloves in the hall...well, unless you count reaching outside the door for the linen cart that is directly outside the door. But my whole body isn't outside the room.

It is drilled in our heads: no gloves in the hall and no linens on the floor. So now I set dirty linens on clean chairs that visitors sit on. J/K. I don't follow that rule.

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i thought the "no gloves in the hallway" rule was for gloves being worn without reason.....there for not known whether they were clean or dirty....and if you think long term care is going to provide linen bags for every room........:lol2:

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Specializes in ER/Trauma.
and if you think long term care is going to provide linen bags for every room........:lol2:
Didn't think about that :idea:

I work ortho/surg.

And my co-workers from 25+ years ago tell me stories of how "gloves were a rarity back in the days" :eek:

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IMO this is one of those theoretical edicts from on high that sounds good and makes sense IF you also spend the $$$$ to implement it properly. HA! That would involve hampers in every room and housekeeping staff to round regularly and collect from them properly. Not going to happen. I try to adhere to policy when possible but my safety and mental health come first. There's no way I'm loading up 20 lbs. of @@#%ty laundry and then toting it down the hall barehanded. I do change gloves in the room before carrying it and I wash my hands all night every night like I have OCD but I need the mind trick of one more layer of plastic between me and the poo!

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Didn't think about that :idea:

I work ortho/surg.

And my co-workers from 25+ years ago tell me stories of how "gloves were a rarity back in the days" :eek:

indeed they were.....went to NS 81-84....they were just coming into common use at that time.....AIDS was just presenting itself, my nursing class had the first patient so dx in that hosp......

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Specializes in Neuro ICU, Neuro/Trauma stepdown.

As an aide, I was most likely to wrap everything in what was least contaminated (like a bath towell) and carry my little package one-handed to the linen hamper. Then lose the glove and wash. The only LTC that I worked at where this rule was actually followed they were all sticklers about it. Nobody broke the rule, which I thought was somewhat humerous (like no linen on the floor, but that's another thread) because I've seen this rarely followed. Except on days when management is lurking. The ironic part is that behind closed doors, I've never seen more people work without gloves and without doing proper pericare. Or any pericare for that matter. There were aides there that seemed to have the philosophy that "if I cant get it all off wiping with this brief, then it's not coming off." It was completly ridiculous. But we all carried small rolls of cheapie trashbags and bagged every bit of trash and linen that left the room. It wasn't hard for me to get in the habit, it's really more about being provided with the small rolls of trashbags and being told to carry it. When I went to the next nursing home and didn't have the rolls of bags, I was lost. And then the only ones to be found were in the bottoms of the trashcans. But that's another whole can o' worms!

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Specializes in ER/Trauma.
I try really hard not to touch the doorknob on our soiled utility room because of this. I am very germ conscious.
You know, now that I think about it - I almost never use my palms/hands to open doors anymore!

It's mostly my elbow/shoulder/hip or if I'm in a hurry, the back of my wrist.

I've been doing this unconsciously and never thought about it till now! :lol2:

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No gloves in the hall, no clothes/bedding/towels on the floor (!!!), bring a laundry hamper into the room before you start stripping the bed or bathing the patient.

We have 10 rooms and two laundry carts down the hall in the dirty utility room. We go get a cart before we start in a room.

However, I have been known to carry dirty laundry down the hall wearing gloves. . . . :uhoh21: no one is perfect. ;)

steph

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I was always taught to bag it, then take it to the soiled linen closet.

I've seen some people take the "hamper" with them--leaving it outside the room, bag & tie the linens, then put them in the hamper. I guess it saves a few steps...

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Specializes in floor to ICU.
No gloves in the hall, no clothes/bedding/towels on the floor (!!!), bring a laundry hamper into the room before you start stripping the bed or bathing the patient.

We have 10 rooms and two laundry carts down the hall in the dirty utility room. We go get a cart before we start in a room.

However, I have been known to carry dirty laundry down the hall wearing gloves. . . . :uhoh21: no one is perfect. ;)

steph

We are lucky to have linen carts in every room. (I fought for this when they expanded our floor.) Recently, I was "caught" :nono: by the Infection Control nurse taking a plastic garbage bag full of a poopy adult diaper to the dirty utility room. I had gloves on...or one glove, I can't remember. I asked if she expected me to carry the dirty bag with bare hands. She replied that I should have unrolled the glove so it was between me and the bag but not over my hand.

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