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Discussion

Gloves!

First of all, the reason why im making this post is because today was my first clinicals at a nursing home. and my preceptor took vital signs without gloves. So... I just want to hear your thoughts.

We all are taught by our teachers when to and not to wear gloves. Like gloves cant be worn in the halls and must not leave the room.

They also say, its ok to touch patients without gloves at certain occasions. like sometimes taking vital signs. Because they use the logic " If you're the patient, do you want a person to make you feel you're dirty cause they have gloves on every time they touch you?"

But, I think gloves should be worn every single time you make contact with patient and other materials that make indirect contact with patient. even though, a surface may look virtually clean, it might be contaminated by infectious microbes.

I dont want to seem mean, cause i know alot of people like touching others. i just want to share my opinion. im still new to nursing school.

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    I guess by that same logic, you'd want to wear gloves every time you go grocery shopping or pump gas or read a library book...

    Once you get to know patients better, I think you'll understand that you don't need to wear gloves all the time. Patients often are especially in need of some human touch, they don't feel well and touching brings comfort.

    You'll alcohol gel or wash up before and after touching patients, so you really will be OK :).

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    • Expert

    The only time I would wear gloves for vitals is if the patient is in isolation.Hikernurse is right,you need to provide a human touch and gloves are not needed for normal contact.

    My charge nurse says that students that aren't afraid to touch the patients tend to turn out to be be good nurses.

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    You don't need gloves to take vital signs unless pt. is on precautions or if there is drainage.

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    I guess by that same logic, you'd want to wear gloves every time you go grocery shopping or pump gas or read a library book...Once you get to know patients better, I think you'll understand that you don't need to wear gloves all the time. Patients often are especially in need of some human touch, they don't feel well and touching brings comfort.You'll alcohol gel or wash up before and after touching patients, so you really will be OK :).
    It's funny that you mentioned this because I said the same thing a few days to my professor. it's so interesting to me how some people become so disease and bacteria conscious in a hospital setting, in yet we come in contact with sick people, bacteria, and other things, all the time in our daily lives and don't think of it much at all.

    Surfaces, and people are contaminated EVERYWHERE not just in a hospital setting.

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    I go work with patients all the time without wearing gloves. I'm completely comfortable wearing them, however, I've become just as comfortable without them. Now I come from a transport background and in that environment, I wear gloves nearly 100% of the time. Why? Many times I'm not told if the patient is on isolation or they're essentially an unknown and it's highly possible to end up with my hands coming into close contact with some fluid or other "stuff" that I don't know if it's infectious, so I wear gloves. Now if I know the patient isn't infectious, I typically won't wear gloves because the "human touch" can be very reassuring.

    As far as surfaces and people being contaminated, that's true... however the real isue is what the contamination is.

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    There is no reason to wear gloves when taking vital signs unless, as others have said, the patient is on contact precautions. You wear gloves when you touch bodily fluids like blood, urine, vomit and stool. You don't need gloves to touch a patient's arm or to listen to his heart.

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    Let's say that surface is the BP cuff. In terms of protecting the pt, it is not going to matter whether or not you are wearing gloves. In terms of protecting yourself, what about the table you touched before you put on the gloves? What about he microbes on the nurses station that you touched while doing your charting? What about those on the door handle you turned when you entered the room? Point is, microbes are everywhere. Wearing gloves to take VS is not going to protect you and not going to protect the pt. If the pt is isolation, then wear gloves...otherwise, just taking VS--gloves should not be necessary.

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    We use the palpation method when taking BP so definitely don't have the need for gloves.

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    • Author

    Thank you for replying.

    I have a mild case of OCD so I already have the habit of avoiding to touch any kind of surface. Plus stuff like diseases we learn in nursing school sometimes make me suspicious of a lot of things.

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