Wearing goggles while putting in an IV or performing phlebotomy?

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Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.

Does your institution require this? What about your nursing school (if you are a student)?

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I have never been at a hospital that requires this, except during the whole SARS thing. I wear glasses anyways so i think it's a little silly to put goggles on as well.

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Blood doesn't splatter when you are sticking a vein, although anything is possible.

The only time I witnessed a splatter was a doc inserting a radial arterial line.........blood splattered everywhere and Yes, the pt was known

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- HIV+ .

When I worked in ICU, I bought myself a pair of clear lens glasses at the drugstore and wore them frequently, as I was always splattering myself when emptying foley bags, suction cannisters, ngt suction cannisters, suctioning trachs , ETT's, etc....seems I was just a splatterer.

Anyway, I liked the protection my attractive glasses provided. And also the safety feature of protecting my eyes. They were comfortable, much more than goggles would be.

I do not wear them now as I do not empty anything, and as I said, I am not worried about blood splattering my eyes when performing venipunctures.

The lab techs in our hospital who do all the morning lab stiks do not wear protective goggles. Few wear glasses. Again, they are doing venipunctures.

It is not required in our hospital.

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I have only worn goggles for art sticks or when dealing with pt in restraints (as far as phlebotomy goes)

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seems like over kill to me. I can be a messy IV starter always get it in 1 shot (damn now I cursed my self) but I drip all over and have never had a IV start squirt me in the eye.

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

I ALWAYS wear goggles. I'm not taking any chances.

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

Nope. Heck they are still trying to get us old school nurses to wear gloves while starting IVs. :)

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that sounds like overkill to me

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

I call it pretend-like-everyone-has-ebola.

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Specializes in Everything except surgery.
Originally posted by 3rdShiftGuy

Nope. Heck they are still trying to get us old school nurses to wear gloves while starting IVs. :)

Ditto!

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Originally posted by 3rdShiftGuy

Nope. Heck they are still trying to get us old school nurses to wear gloves while starting IVs. :)

:roll We are supposed to wear gloves???:roll

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Specializes in Everything except surgery.

:rotfl: :roll

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