Integrated Maternal and Newborn Care Basic Skills Course ...

Reference Manual
Use of Gloves
Gloves protect the client from contact with micro-organisms on the health worker’s hands and
the health worker from contact with blood and other body fluids.
Three types of gloves are commonly used:
• Examination gloves (for contact with skin and intact mucous membranes and
wherever there is risk of exposure for the health worker)
• Sterile/disposable surgical gloves (for contact with tissues under the skin or with the
bloodstream, and preferably for conducting deliveries)
• Utility or heavy-duty household gloves, reusable after cleaning (for handling dirty linen,
instruments, and waste, for housekeeping and cleaning contaminated surfaces)
Wear gloves when:
• performing a procedure.
• there will be contact with intact mucous membranes.
• there will be contact with the tissues under the skin or with the bloodstream.
• handling soiled items (e.g., instruments and gloves).
• disposing of contaminated waste.
When gloves are required, a separate pair of gloves must be used with each woman or baby to
avoid cross-contamination. Disposable gloves are preferred, but when resources are limited,
surgical gloves can be reused if they are:
• decontaminated by soaking in 0.5% chlorine for 10 minutes.
• washed and rinsed.
• sterilized by autoclaving or high-level disinfected by boiling or steaming.
Single-use or disposable surgical gloves should not be reused more than three times, even after
the above steps, because invisible tears may occur.
Note: Do not use gloves that are cracked, peeling, visibly torn, or
that contain holes.
Integrated maternal and newborn care
Basic skills course
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