Gum Chewing

Unacceptable and completely unprofessional. I understand the severity of bad breath so get yourself an antiseptic mouthwash. If you have a patient with an open wound and you were asked to come in and do a dressing change, you don't want your piece of gum to fall out and land on your patient's open wound.

Those are my two cents. Hope it helps you.

Wall - E

I agree. Unprofessional. Freshen up on your break.

I chew it, but consciously don't smack it. Cheek it. I think it's better than having halitosis.

When I worked inpatient, I chewed gum while I was at the nurses' station...when I left the station, I would tuck it sort of between my cheek and gums. Now that I work in a clinic, I do chew it more...but I still don't chew it while I'm actively engaged with a patient.

Some people will find anything to complain about.

AMEN...

I get dry mouth and quite thirsty while working so I do occasionally chew gum:quietly with my mouth closed and never when I am with a pt. My kids' friends were always told if I could hear them chewing gum, it had to go!

I chew gum at the nurses station and cheek it during care. I don't do any invasive stuff while chewing gum through that's kinda gross. Much bigger fish to fry imo.

I like those dissolvable Listerine strips. I know it would be stupid to constantly chew gum in class, during lab time, or during clinicals so I found this to be a good alternative.

Gum helps with some of the smells in the unit