Gloves are a crucial tool for infection prevention, but it’s important to use them correctly.
Overreliance on gloves can increase the risk of infection spread. By using gloves wisely, we can help protect both our patients and staff while conserving resources.
The Gloves Off campaign encourages health and care workers to stop using single-use gloves when carrying out certain activities for non-infectious patients.
We are mindful not to overuse gloves or use them inappropriately, as overuse of gloves not only increases the risk of cross-contamination but can also make patients feel uncomfortable and stigmatised. Reducing unnecessary gloves use and focusing on good hand hygiene and infection prevention principles will lead to a better and safer experience for both patients and staff.
The overuse of gloves can create a false sense of security. Gloves pick up and transfer germs in the same way as ungloved hands, so gloves should only be used if there is actual or potential exposure to bodily fluids, exposure to chemicals or if the patient is being nursed in isolation due to an infection. Gloves should not, for example, be used during an observation round, a therapy session, a meal service or whilst walking around the hospital.
We have appointed our RMN Folashade (an RMN is a registered nurse with specialist training in mental health nursing) to be our 'Gloves Off' champion, and they might challenge our staff if they are wearing gloves when they don't need to!
In addition, using gloves only when it is clinically necessary will reduce the incidence of health and care workers experiencing skin problems such as dermatitis. Skin problems are not always caused by a reaction to the glove itself but can be due to the hands sweating and the lack of airflow inside the glove.
As well as improving patient safety, there are other benefits of using fewer gloves in health and care settings. The NHS alone uses 1.4 billion gloves every year and about a third of those are worn for activities where they are not needed. Reducing our glove use will lead to a greener Mildmay Hospital. The initiative supports staff to work more sustainably, and the money saved can be used more effectively elsewhere.
We are excited about the potential positive impacts in terms of environmental sustainability, infection prevention and control, staff skin health and cost.
The Gloves Off campaign is an NHS initiative that encourages healthcare workers to reduce the use of non-sterile disposable gloves when treating non-infectious patients. The campaign's goal is to improve patient safety by ensuring that staff have clean hands when interacting with patients and their families. The campaign also aims to reduce the environmental impact of healthcare, improve infection prevention, and support staff skin health.
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