My Poor Hands have been Washed Raw

EmmaG, RN · Oct 12, 2007

I really prefer working in latex gloves. They are much closer, to me, to a second set of skin, and much more malleable and workable than vinyl, which I absolutely hate.
Thanks again for the suggestions. I'm going to look into the suggested lotions, as well.

Check with your hospital's infection control nurse. Ours had info regarding what lotions are safe to use with latex (and other) gloves.

Seattle74 · Oct 12, 2007

sounds crazy but I use super glue to the tips of my hands. It works and was suggested to me by another nurse. It seals the cracks so I can keep washing and type at work, etc.... Just be careful to not touch anything til it is completely dry and use just a tiny bit to each crack. It was a miracle for me-

dria · Oct 12, 2007

i used to swear by paraffin wax dips...warm and soothing at the end of a long day and re-hydrated my parched skin

ditto the thoughts on lotions throughout the day...i used some swedish product 2-3 x/day and that really helped...the name escapes me presently...

Crash_Cart · Oct 12, 2007

Education is your friend. :)

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FSL/is_3_78/ai_109352512/pg_1

Hope that helps.

RN mom of 2 · Oct 12, 2007

sorry, i misspelled the name of the lotion in my other post. here's a link:

http://www.dreamtimebaby.com/stmocrbymu.html

:balloons:

Indy, LPN, LVN · Oct 12, 2007

Ditto on the A&D ointment. That stuff may smell funny but it sure is nice on the skin. So far it's the only thing I've found that has no drying agents in it whatsoever. Second up for me would be Palmer's Shea Butter - it's advertised as a concentrated cream and boy is it thick. I use A&D at home before work, one to two times a week, and palmer's at work.

The alcohol hand gels are nasty; I've made a point to just get really fond of the sink lately and skip the alcohol, and it's helped my hands a lot. Also completely removing my rings at the start of shift (or leaving them at home) helped the ring-area dermatitis go away. We use nitrile gloves already, they're the green things embedded with aloe.

prmenrs, RN · Oct 12, 2007

I swear, after all these years I have asbestos hands! When they are dry, I hate putting anything w/petroleum on them--it stings. Same for most of the hand creams. I'll do it, but it does hurt. The Vaseline Cream stuff is not too bad. Also, Avon moisture therapy extra strength cream.

Sometimes, you need more fluid going into your body, too. Try to drink more water, and take your vitamins, including the Fish Oil stuff. I think it does help!

MedSurgeNewbie · Oct 12, 2007

I know this may sound goofy - but when I started one of my preceptor RN's gave me a trick - She told me to make sure I dry my hands really well after washings, that not getting them dried off it what was chapping my hands -and it worked - now I get them really dry and helps - Hope all theese tips help its so miserable to have sore hands

mamunsey · Oct 12, 2007

I know the feeling, it seems to have gotten better here lately, but maybe the worse has not occured yet!! I like the Avon silicone glove lotion, you can apply it before work and it will stay on through 5-6 handwashings, and I also like the Goldbond lotion and I put Aquaphor or plain vaseline on my hands at night then sleep in cotton gloves, it really helps.

RRTM2 · Oct 12, 2007

one shift with 5 ventilators is 60 hand washings just for vent checks and treatments... plus re-taping, transports and whatever else comes up. my hands are raw after a few days.

thanks very much for the suggestions!

nurz2be · Oct 12, 2007

Help! At this point it hurts to put soap on them. I just used some heavy duty Eucerin cream.
What do you do during the day? Like I have time to lotion, y'know?
Ouch.

There are 2 lotions I can personally recommend. The first might shock you a little. I grew up around farm animals, my grandparents had jersey milking cows. They were milked 2-3 times a day. Their teets would crack from the machines that were used for the milking. There is a product, that actually sells for human use, it is FANTASTIC, I swear by it, called Udderly Smooth. The website is http://www.udderlysmooth.com Our family used it for years on the cows. I use it now on my hands as a nursing student.

A preceptor in our rotations swears by some lotion called Gloves in a Bottle, I used it a few times and it actually kept my hands from getting to the cracking stage, I have fierce issues with latex and powdered gloves.

So prevention use the second, restoration, use the first.

Keepstanding, ASN, RN · Oct 12, 2007

After many years of cracking and bleeding hands, I was given this tip from another All Nurses poster.....Neutrogena Swedish Formula hand lotion.

It's the BEST ! A little dab will do you too. Try it, you won't be sorry. Target, WalMart, KMart all sell it.

_________

Praiser