Wearing Gloves for Injections

Editorial Team / Admin · Nov 16, 2005

thanks everyone. according to one article that i was able to locate the cdc and osha do not indicate that gloves are mandatory (at according to this source) however there may well be caveats r/t possible contamination. it makes sense to err on the side on safety and i have advised my students in this regard. however, they are watching varying practices from different nurses - i really would like to find some true evidence on this rather than a secondary source. i have tried the usual searchers w/only minimal success. so, if anyone knows of a good source i would appreciate a nudge in that direction!
thanks:thankya:

hello, bgsrn,:balloons:

we go by the osha guidelines in our program. we post these guidelines for the students. we do not mandate they wear the gloves during sc/im injections, but, urge them to do so.

here is the link for said guidelines and a couple others to assist you in developing protocols for your facility.

http://www.texmed.org/template.aspx?id=1651 these guidelines are the ones we post for the students

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/hip/isolat/isopart2.htm cdc recommendations

http://www.osha-compliance.com/ osha

http://www.osha-compliance.com/ask-the-experts/index.htm pose a question to the expert at osha

glogodschild · Nov 24, 2005

no gloves huh?? Well, as a nurse educator...i require my students to wear gloves for injections, picking up a kleenex, handling a bedpan, going under the covers to turn patients...etc. Who wants the germs anyway? What does Nosocomial mean? Isn't it high in the hospitals now...this question and the answers confirms why. Good luck to those that don't believe in wearing them....and may God bless the patients. Let's not mention the long finger nails that did not have gloves on.....i better stop now.

a concerned educator!

MarySunshine · Nov 24, 2005

glogodschild,

I think it's very unlikely that you would come in contact with blood during an injection. I certainly never have. Like someone else mentioned, if you did have a bit of bleeding you could easily put on gloves and wipe it off in a snap. You are injecting onto a clean, dry surface of skin. I don't consider it to be a risky venture. I always wash my hands very well and I wear gloves when appropriate (which is quite often). I don't think it's reasonable to say that those of us who don't use gloves for injections are spreading disease throughout the hospital, because that doesn't add up to make sense.

KatieBell · Nov 24, 2005

Just a reminder. Gloves really aren't completely protective. They are easy to poke through or soak through with some minor defects present. Handwashing is still the best defense against nosocomial disease, not gloves.

I'm a big proponent of wearing gloves, but I do find some people who get obsessive about it.

glogodschild · Nov 25, 2005

Hey,

what about those times you did not have gloves on and had to use cotton for a bleeder and it was bloody...did you watch how you handled it? Did you walk away from the bed and leave the patient blood running while you stepped away to get a glove...most nurses don't and would immediately take something at hand and place on the patient. Now you have exposed yourself unnecessarily. Handwashing is great and should be done all the time..even after removing gloves....gloves don't take the place of HANDWASHING EVER!

There are times when nurses don't have gloves on and don't wash hands and go to patient's rooms...you see it and I do too and so does patients. It is not something all nurses are very careful about....so these are the times gloves would help. Again....whether you believe in gloves or not for injections, etc....believe in cleanliness,protecting yourself and family, and cutting down on nosocomial infections.....if you keep these in mind...you will use good discretion of when to put them on.

luvmy2angels · Nov 29, 2005

As students, we are required to wear gloves. However, our instructors do not wear gloves. The hospital where we are doing are clinicals have some nurses that DO wear them, and some that DON'T. I don't know if it is personal preference or not. I would NEVER give an injection (IM or SQ) without gloves on!

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Nov 29, 2005

I don't wear gloves for SQ injections, but occasionally will glove up to give an IM to a patient with a known infection (e.g. MRSA, Hep C) or one who's just, well, dirty......you know, those 'hygiene-challenged' patients you feel like you need to take a bath after caring for.:uhoh21:

I know, you can't tell these days who's infected with what.....but I don't think it's necessary to wear gloves for every single task, so I don't. In any event, I always have alcohol swabs and bandaids at the ready in case there is any bleeding at the injection site, which happens infrequently.

nurse_elyse · Nov 30, 2005

Our instructors tell us to glove the non dominant hand when giving injections and keep a etoh pad in between the fingers just incase we get a bleeder. But as far as that goes, I always glove whenever theres a chance I will be in contact with blood or bodily fluids. I'd rather be safe than sorry

BGSRN · Nov 30, 2005

It is really interesting to see such a varied response. Thank you all for your input. I do think I will continue to advise my students to glove for all IM/SC injections although they are seeing a great variety in the practice of the nursing staff where we are doing our clinicals. True - this does not protect you from needlesticks and nothing replaces handwashing and both of these facts can not be argued. However, I really can not see any problems from wearing gloves (unless someone had an allergy) to advise otherwise.

pvjerrys · Dec 16, 2005

What are your module objectives and your text references state? Ours state that when there is riskof being exposed to blood or body secretions, glove up.

Programs cannot perform procedures based on community practice (CP). Sometimes it takes years for CP to catch up with new research.

It's placing your students at risk not to wear gloves when giving parenteral meds or potentially being exposed to blood / body secretions. I'm surprised at this post. It's ludicrous to think that the skin on our hands are compeltely intact!

Our area hospitals have boxes of gloves in various sizes in each of the patient rooms.

pvjerrys · Dec 16, 2005

BTW, we have non-latex gloves for those students who have latex allergy.

rhenmag9 · Dec 26, 2005

some hospitals require gloves for shots, some instructors also, but for me, nurses must wear to avoid contact to patients or contamination, esp. nursing students....much better if you take care of your self even adm. im or sc shots....tc!!!