Health care

The medical industry requires the highest level of hygiene. Maintaining particular cleanliness is essential for the safety of patients and medical staff. Remember that hands are a primary route of transmission of microorganisms. The proper way to prevent infections is to observe appropriate standards of hygiene and to use the correct type of single-use gloves.

Sample hospital ward
Children's wards, neonatal wards, child care
Treatment room, specialist clinic
Hospital Emergency department (HED)
Isolation room
Endoscopy laboratory
Sample operating theatre
Labour ward
ICU, recovery rooms
Vascular diagnostics and surgical radiology
Cytostatic laboratory, nuclear medicine laboratory
Hospital pharmacy
Laboratory diagnostic centre
Central sterile services department
Hospital hygiene department
Endoscopy
Laryngology
Urology
Gynaecology
Treatment room
Dentistry
Orthopaedics and arthroscopy
Eye clinic
Pharmacy
Aesthetic medicine
Nursing homes, health care and curative institutions, hospices
Veterinary medicine
Veterinary medicine – Premedication, dirty procedures: shaving, washing, cleaning, rinsing
Veterinary medicine – Dealing with infectious diseases, epidemiological threats
Veterinary medicine – Sterile operations
Medical Laboratory

REMEMBER – THE MOST IMPORTANT PRINCIPLES OF HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK

Gloves cannot replace hand disinfection as they do not always provide an impermeable barrier for microorganisms.

During some medical procedures it is recommended to use double gloves or products with special properties that minimise the risk of bacterial and virus spread, and also protect medical staff.

In specific cases, resistance to permeation of toxic substances through the glove material is also important. Note that the barrier decreases with the mechanical wear of the material, so it is recommended that gloves be changed at regular intervals during certain procedures.

Protective gloves intended for the medical industry should conform to Regulation (EU) 2016/425 of the European Parliament and with the Directives 93/42/EEC and 2007/47/EC.

The following rules must be observed during all medical procedures.

One pair of gloves (minimum) = one procedure.
Use only single-use gloves and discard them after removal!
For hygienic reasons, wear single-use gloves for each activity.
Do not disinfect used gloves – it is not allowed!
Use double gloving when performing procedures with a high risk of infection.
Select appropriate glove material for the specific task – pay attention to the barrier properties of the material.
Always disinfect hands before and after putting on and taking off the gloves; wash your hands if necessary.
When working with gloves on, do not touch personal objects (such as a mobile phone), which provide a hotbed for bacteria.
When performing activities with a high risk of mechanical damage, use gloves made of a thicker material.
If the glove becomes mechanically damaged during use, be sure to take it off and put on a new pair.
Choose the correct glove size and raw material for your hands.

Raw material

The raw material of which the gloves are made is particularly important for the medical industry, as many procedures require instruments that can mechanically damage the material. When performing long and complex procedures, check the condition of the gloves regularly and change them as necessary. Damage that occurs in the material can be in the form of invisible micro-cracking, which means that medical staff must use the highest level of caution.

In addition, when working with harsh chemicals, you need to select a product with sufficiently low material permeability. For high risk procedures, double gloving is recommended. You should also pay attention to the recommended areas of application – appropriate gloves used at work ensure both the comfort and safety of the user without limiting tactile sensitivity, and guarantee an effective barrier for the protection of patients and staff. Due to the required high precision of movements, it is recommended that you use gloves in the size that fits your hand best. Also note the gloves’ AQL, which indicates the numbers of micro-holes in the material – the lower its value, the higher the safety level guaranteed by the gloves – its maximum value for medical gloves is 1.5.

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