hand hygiene

update. I emailed Charlotte Cash who writes the protocols for Isopharm, this is what she had to say on the matter.

The practice should have protocols in place to prevent contamination and to ensure that staff hands are clean and that new gloves are donned before handling unwrapped sterilised instruments.

Hi, are there any updates on this regarding using gloves or not, only im finding it hard to find anything on this matter.

Hello Glovers!

A very interesting debate this, to glove or not to glove....

Anyway, I agree that the HTM 01 05 states that gloves aren't needed when bagging up clean instruments, or when making up trays.
If the hand washing is done correctly there should be no problems with it.
As someone mentioned, the gloves aren't sterile but neither are the instruments when taken out of the autoclave.

Regarding the CQC, the more dental practices they are visiting, the more they will learn about dentistry and all that is going on in a dental environment. In our area, we have four 'inspectors' and they aren't from the world of dentistry but on the other hand common sense and Infection Control, including the HTM 01 05, should give enough to be able to inspect correctly.

If some say dont use gloves for bagging up. Because the gloves arent sterile. Yet when you unbag and place the instruments on to the trays for the dentist to use. You wear gloves ??? Yes So then still not sterile.

Well to be honest think about it. When you take the tray from the steri and bag gloves or no gloves bagging is not sterile the powers that be need to show stats to all these things there introducing and I am sure they will all be very very low figs of incidents.

Dentistry was once an enjoyable job but with all these changes sorry to say its no longer. 35yrs experience

Those shouting from the roof top need to have one set of proceeders rather than CQC GDC CODE any other you can think of all having a different view.

Rant over

I still can't believe, with all the anal, silly things that HTM 01 - 05 has brought up that they still allow people to bag up with out gloves. Don't get me wrong, I understand and appreciate that a (correctly) washed pair of hands or often just as safe as non-irradiated gloves. It just seems odd.

Wot does it say in the levison. Go with that as that is correct.

CQC arent qualified in dentistry they are lay people telling us how to do our jobs.
The best thing to do is to go with everyone else in the practice or contact ur local cross infection team.
I wear gloves when bagging up the instruments etc. But im from the old school where we never wore gloves till 1990 is i began dental nursing in 1984 we didnt have gloves or PPe in thoise days nor the Heb B injection etc we mixed alamgam up by hand thru a piece of gauze.

I agree with as long has your hands are clean there is no need to wear gloves

Yes I'd be interested in the details of CQC's visit to you too.
Is it similar to a practice visit from the PCT? Is it someone with dental experience/ understanding of (eg. retired dentist) or just a pencil pusher?

The latest thing with the CQC (my principal dentist tells me)is that they only sent out the fee amounts on the 31st, and the first day of registration (where the dentist pay these fees that they have not yet been informed of) is April 1st.He calls them "Can't Quite Cope".

Maybe you could give some tips on CQC visit that you had, you must be one of the first prictices to have had them come round.

I agree with Max CQC gave my practice a visit and I asked the same question and was told as long as hand hygiene was carried out you didnt have to wear gloves to dry and inspect instuments after they had been autoclaved

I have taken this from the HTM 01-05

Hand hygiene should be practised at the following key stages in the decontamination process so as to minimise the risk of contamination:
•before and after each treatment session;
•before and after the removal of PPE;
•following the washing of dental instruments;
•before contact with instruments that have been steam-sterilized (whether or not these instruments are wrapped);
•after cleaning or maintaining decontamination devices used on dental instruments;
•at the completion of decontamination work.

I bag with clean bare hands. We have been waiting 2 years for our decontam room to be sorted. Can't wait. I think nurses doing it in surgery takes up time we could be spending really taking care of patients.

we have a central sterilisation room, so it all gets packed in there anyway. we was all chatting before and two of us do it my way, other 2 with gloves! hmmm i think my freshly washed hands are cleaner than gloves, you dont know whos touched and packed thoses gloves!!

Hey! I had the same problem and because of what patient may think when they see u packing instruments with bare hands, we agreed to use vinyl (just non latex ) gloves. When pt is not in the surgery I proceed with the washing hands way

Hey there, just wondering what anyone thinks about this..... having a bit of a debate at work.... when we take the instruments out of the autoclave, some nurses wash their hands with hibiscrub, then use a hand gel, before bagging up instruments. other nurses are putting gloves on and before bagging up - which is right??? im with the handwashing thing, im sure ive read that in htm 01-05!! we all set up with clean ungloved hands anyway! just curious to see what other people are doing x x x