Licking One's Fingers When Passing Out Papers

[Karynica, RN]

is it me or is this just gross? My mother has always done this when going through papers, looking at papers, etc.

I noticed that a lot of teachers do this too when passing out papers to kids or like in nursing school, the instructor did this. Am I just too picky??

What does everyone think of this?

[mysecret_alr]

:no:I think it is disgusting....I'm thinking I don't want your germs or slober on my paper:no:

[MedSurgeNewbie]

its bad but I have to admit I have done it, now I try to keep a moist spongy around..

[shelly304]

You're right. It's gross!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

Licking the tip of the finger when passing out papers does not bother me or "gross me out." Moisture is sometimes required to get a stack of papers to be separated, and it is hard to pass out papers with dry hands. The germs that might be mixed with the saliva don't live outside the body for very long, either.

This practice might be disgusting to some, but it personally doesn't affect me.

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

In a word: EEEEEEWWWWWWWWWW.

[allthemadmen]

It sometimes bothers me, when someone is very, uh, deliberate about it (or particular people do it), but in general, no, it doesn't. I'm really not that squeamish, though my husband thinks I'm becoming a germaphobe.

A lot of us do stuff like this without realizing it, too.

It cracked me up to see my MICRO professor doing it, though! At least he wasn't doing it in lab!

[Medic2RN, BSN, RN, EMT-P]

My only thought when I see this is "I hope he/she washed her hands before licking them!"

yuch.

[zamboni]

The germs that might be mixed with the saliva don't live outside the body for very long, either.

Yeah...but the germs that can live on paper (charts) can get passed into someone's mouth. :wink2:

Seriously, there's really nothing that grosses me out. But I can't help but stare when I watch a doc or nurse lick their fingers as the thumb through a chart. (I also had a teacher when I was in grade school that would literally slobber on the papers. Ugh.)

[lilywater]

This is actually something that I find to be unsanitary in some situations. Especially when done in the hospital with all the places and hands these charts have been in. In general it does kind of bother me because I don't think it is sanitary to lick one's finger and touch things. I don't do it myself.

[Sabby_NC]

LOL That is why I keep one of those little rubber thingies that go on da finger... makes separating papers SOOOOOOO much easier... Slurpssssssssssssss :chuckle

[tatarn2b2007]

OMG!!! I thought it was just me that is absolutely disgusted by this!! Everything about it is disgusting, even the sound someone makes when doing it. I stare at people in disbelief when I see it. Thankfully I am not the only one!!