I was shadowing a nurse yesterday at a facility who happened to be a veteran nurse ( 60 years or older). Well, a pt. fell and was bleeding from her had. I witnessed the fall, so I called for help and made sure the pt. stayed put until helped arrived. The nurse I was shadowing came and started to apply pressure to the pts. head without gloves, the pts. blood was all over the nurses' hand. I felt bad that I didn't do that... but ultimately my health comes first and I'm not touching blood without gloves.
As we were doing wound care she still didn't wear gloves. She said back in her day she has touched so many things with her bear hands that sometimes she doesn't wear them.
I understand that is how she is used to practicing.
I cannot speak for other facilities, but I know if our infection control nurse would have seen that 60+ year old nurse doing that, she would have at least been given a verbal warning for violating policy, and possibly terminated depending on the infection control nurse's mood that day. I am not saying one way or the other what she did was right or wrong. But I know what the policy at our facility says about PPE and when it should be worn.
I wear gloves when I anticipate coming in contact with body fluids/substances. I do not wear gloves when I am just pulling a pt up in bed, combing their hair, or other tasks like that. I have seen nurses who put on gloves EVERY time they enter a pt's room; even before they know what the task is going to be. To me that is OVERKILL.
As a L&D nurse, I get body fluids on my skin daily DESPITE wearing gloves.
It's a messy job.
That being said, wear gloves when you can.
But I've done CPR out in public, exposed to complete unknowns, because it was an emergency.
I would have applied pressure gloveless if it was a true emergency. (cut artery stuff) But not if alternatives available, like cloths, garbage bag or a pocketful of gloves. In the hospital setting there are very few times when the emergency is such that not using gloves can be condoned.
but I must agree with the "old nurse" (like me) who mentioned that some people seem to think that gloves will always magically protect them from pathogens. Wash your hands, folks!
Wow people can act like such germ-a-phobes but it's interesting to watch these same people contaminate themselves by touching their eye after touching a keyboard, phone, dropping their pen on the floor without sanitizing it before using etc. Not saying anyone here would do anything like that.
I'm certainly not perfect and wear gloves when I suspect I may come in contact with someone else's fluids. I definitely spend more time though washing my hands thoroughly than wrestling with gloves for every little thing.
I see there's a whole bunch of folks here with non-intact skin....
What happens when blood gets on your arms or other areas where gloves don't cover?
I'm not saying don't wear gloves. But don't buy into the hype they make you invincible either.
You're right. Unfortunately too many see gloves as an impenetrable barrier and that is a joke. A needle will go through a hand with a glove on just as fast as without. God only knows where non-sterile gloves have been before they are packed and shipped. When I worked in NICU, we had gloves made somewhere in the middle east, like Pakistan. I could just envision the wild animals roaming through the factory, gloves dropping on the floor and being picked up and packed for shipment. I graduated from nursing school in 1986, prior to that I was a phlebotomist and we didn't wear gloves. I never had a problem and don't know anyone who did.
Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
I disagree that wearing gloves only protects the wearer. That's assuming the person has washed their hands properly, which we all know how often that happens. I had a lab tech at my dr.'s office try to draw my blood with a nasty, black ace bandage wrapped from her knuckles to her elbow with no gloves on. Did not wash her hands before me and pretty sure she hadn't all day. I told her to either wear gloves, wash her hands and not wear bandage while she drew my blood, or get someone else. She was p'd off, but come on. That bandage looked disgusting.
Outside of the ick factor of the dirty bandage, how did her putting on gloves protect you? The area where she poked should have been cleaned without being retouched before you were stuck. So I am not seeing how you were protected by the non sterile gloves. Once the area is cleaned for an IV or a blood draw it should not be retouched or else it would need to be cleaned again. I understand the sense of safety one feels in having the nurse wears gloves when drawing blood or doing an IV, but outside of the nurses protection I don't understand how it's keeping you safe. (you in general). Logically speaking that is.
Then again this sort of reminds me of the red bags and people throwing away anything with a drop of blood on it in them or a foley when unless something is bloody and pretty soaked, it's not necessary. But I see nurses refuse to throw stuff in a normal trashcan all the time because it makes them feel better, although it's a huge waste of money.
Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
6 yrs cna in th er, 6 yrs lab, worked medsurg and tele as RN, dont know what that has to do with someone touching me without gloves when doing labs or shots or ivs. Not saying you do but i know of some and have seen some draw labs on a patient leave that room go to another room and draw labs on a different patient no hand washing no gloves and no they are not touching me if they cant leave their glove intact get me someone else or let me die
If it were me, I would kindly ask them to wash their hands. Then again this doesn't bother me. I am a very hard stick and a lot of the more experienced nurses learned to palpate veins without gloves so they find it hard to find them with the glove on. But it's a risk their are taking themselves by popping off the finger and it's not risking me at all so it doesn't bother me. That's just me though. I would much rather live though if it came down to it. I wouldn't be willing to die because a nurse needed a bare finger to find a good vein on me.
there are a couple of issues here.... and common sense will solve them all. To wear gloves provides a level of protection for both patient and carer. A level of protection which is enhanced by what in my day were called universal precautions... no touch technique where possible and good hygiene. In an emergency situation I'm sure we all done things which in the cold bright light of hindsight we wouldn't necessarily do but as a general rule we really should wear gloves...it's a bit like mouth to mouth without a mask, many of us have done it, we all know we shouldn't and too write such practises off as "I've done it for years" is both unprofessional and lazy. Makes me glad I've retired and no longer have to work with those who have such a cavalier attitude to the safety of themselves, their colleagues and their patients. and if you cannot palpate a vein in gloves you need a bit more practice... sorry. I worked in the OT for years and in order to retain my job learned to do everything in gloves, including threading needles. assembling vascular and ortho bits and bobs to say nothing of managing microsurgery instruments.... it just takes practise.
Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
I will ask again, if you are doing your sticks properly by cleansing after palpating and waiting for it to dry. Please explain how common sense says a non sterile glove or even a sterile glove will protect the patient? What are they getting protected from? A sterile needles coming in contact with their cleansed skin? I wear gloves every time I am poking someone, but it's for my protection, commen sense tells me it's for my protection and common sense tells me that cleaning the patients skin and using a sterile needle will protect my patient.
Oh I can see this conversation..nurse did you get the IV statred on pt xyz? No dr he refused...,well I'll go speak with him, Dr. sir the nurse says you will not allow her to start an IV on you we really need to get an iv started so we can get the medicine started for you. PTxyz, dr i never said no to an IV. DR,well the nurse thought you didnt want one. PT. no I told the nurse she had to wear gloves to start the IV and not to tear the finger out. she or anyone else can stick me but i demand gloves intact. Dr. oh ok I'll speak with the nurse and make sure we get the IV started. Oh nurse............ Guys we are all taught patients have rights, none of us know the family dynamics maybe they have hiv, know someone who got hep, mrsa ect. I know there are emegency situations, but in the normal operation of things dont be offended if someone tells you or asks to replace your gloves or get someone else.
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That Guy, BSN, RN, EMT-B
3,421 Posts
While i understand this, i find it hard to believe someone would watch a person bleed out trying to find gloves