Wearing disposable medical gloves is an important step in protecting workers against contamination, infections and other risks in healthcare settings. The practice of wearing gloves surged after 1987, when the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said healthcare workers should use medical gloves to protect against AIDS and hepatitis.

Research has demonstrated the importance and effectiveness of medical gloves in allowing healthcare workers to provide care for infectious patients while protecting their own health. The use of gloves can also inhibit the spread of dangerous pathogens within the healthcare setting, thus enhancing the safety of everyone. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) dictates that gloves should be worn whenever users anticipate coming in contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials; mucous membranes; non-intact skin; and when handling or touching contaminated items or surfaces.

Knowing Proper Use of Medical Gloves Is Key
Most healthcare workers understand the importance of glove use, but determining the right type of medical gloves to use is a big challenge. It’s important for workers to be educated about the available options and their appropriate uses, according to Esah S. Yip, DSc, director of the Malaysian Rubber Export Promotion Council.

"Generally, the most important function of medical gloves worn by clinicians or other healthcare personnel is to provide very effective barrier protection for both the users and the patients," Esah S. Yip said. Therefore, the right glove should be one that is capable of doing that." A medical glove’s ability to provide effective protection is an important criterion, given that it has been estimated that about 2 million people in hospitals are affected by infections due to poor barrier, resulting in about 80,000 deaths annually," Esah S. Yip added.

The protective abilities of a glove depends on the material it’s made of, so it’s important for workers to make an informed choice about the options they choose, Esah S. Yip said. "For example, many studies by researchers have shown repeatedly that vinyl gloves tend to leak during use more often than latex gloves," he said. "Other gloves, such as nitrile and polychloroprene, show better performance than vinyl, but they are more costly."

Healthcare workers need to be able to recognize the different glove types and apply them to the appropriate tasks and risk level.

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