Surgical gloving: Keeping up with best practices promotes patient safety + clinician comfort

White Paper by Becker’s Healthcare and Cardinal Health

Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) pose a major threat to patient and clinician safety, as well as hospital finances, due to the potential impact on operations and outcomes-linked reimbursement penalties by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). The consequences of HAIs — which include increased morbidity, mortality, length of stay and costs — make infection control at hospitals and health systems paramount, especially during surgical and medical procedures.

Becker’s Hospital Review recently spoke with two Cardinal Health leaders — Dr. Rosemary Sergakis, DNP, RN, Global Medical Science Lead for the U.S., and Dr. Carmen Sierra, DNP, RN, Global Medical Science Lead, Compression/Surgical Gloves — about the crucial role that surgical gloves play in reducing the risk of HAIs.

Glove failure and poor hand health can harm staff, patients and facilities

Surgical gloves serve as a critical barrier against HAIs that can be transmitted to patients through contact with contaminated surfaces and to healthcare workers through contact with infected body fluids. However, prolonged use of gloves — typically associated with long surgical cases — can negatively affect healthcare workers’ hand health and lead to skin irritation, dryness and irritant contact dermatitis.

Hospitals can mitigate the risks to hand health by providing latex-free gloves, training staff on proper glove use, hand hygiene and performing skin assessments and treatment for hand injuries and conditions. Yet, mechanical damage to gloves like perforation due to sharps injuries can still render such measures insufficient.

Dr. Sergakis said the U.S. sees an estimated 400,000 sharps injuries each year, caused by needles, scalpels or other surgical instruments.1 “These injuries are often not noticed until blood is seen on the hands after a glove is removed at the end of surgery, effectively turning the skin into a source of microbial contamination,” she said. “Compromised skin integrity may be a risk factor for acquiring pathogens, as well as for transmitting germs

to our patients.”

Safe glove protocols aim to minimize risks, including allergies

There are established guidelines and recommendations for safe surgical glove usage from public health authorities (such as the CDC), regulatory bodies (like the Occupational Health
and Safety Administration), the World Health Organization, the American Nurses Association and the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses.

Full White Paper Here