5 6 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • M A R C H 2 0 1 9
O
f the safety measures surgeons tend to turn their
masks up at, double gloving ranks up there with safe-
ty sharps and smoke evacuation. But surgeons have
loosened their grip on refusing to don a second pair
of gloves. While nearly one-third of the 165 respon-
dents to last month's Outpatient Surgery online poll say their sur-
geons never (18%) or rarely (13%) double-glove, more than two-thirds
of our respondents say their docs double-glove for some (34%), most
(15%) or all (20%) cases.
Ramon Berguer, MD, FACS, remembers when needlesticks were
considered an accepted occupational hazard in the OR. It's been many
years since Dr. Berguer and others in the medical community started
preaching the importance of double-gloving. By the early 2000s, the
Twice the Protection
A trio of safety experts makes the argument for double-gloving.
Matthew Nojiri | Senior Associate Editor
• ONE OVER THE OTHER Wearing 2 pairs of gloves gives your OR team an extra layer of protection against sharps injuries and bloodborne diseases.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
