gloves, they usually won't
go back, says Dr. Berguer.
"I've been wearing 2
gloves for a long time," he
says. "Now there have
been a couple of times
where I've ended up with
one pair of gloves, and I
felt completely naked
with a single pair of
gloves."
Don't wait for a
mistake
Most safety measures come with some degree of inconvenience, and
that can be a blockade for change. Sometimes it takes an injury or an
accident to take a closer look at safety.
Dr. Berguer remembers his initial response to wearing protective
eyewear. He says it felt uncomfortable, and he wasn't thrilled about
keeping his eyes covered. Then, he got sprayed in the eye with blood
during a procedure and realized the merits of protective glasses.
When it comes to double-gloving, the same process tends to play out.
"For a lot of people, a close call or a needlestick is what it takes for
them to think, 'Wow I wish I had double-gloved,'" says Dr. Berguer.
"That's unfortunate, but that's the way humans often react to a sudden
event."
Find your fit
It's natural for your surgeons and staff to feel uncomfortable when
they first try to double-glove. "It does feel a little bit different," says Ms.
M A R C H 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 6 1
• LAYERED PROTECTION Research indicates double-gloving protects OR
personnel from needlesticks and bloodborne pathogens.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR