Pre‐procedure

ActionRationale

1. 1.Show
   Remove an apron from the dispenser or roll using clean hands and open it out.
   To make it easy to put on. E

Procedure

1. 2.Show
   Place the neck loop over your head and tie the ties together behind your back, positioning the apron so that as much of the front of your body is protected as possible (Action figures 4.20 and 4.21).
   To minimize the risk of contamination being transferred between your clothing and the patient, in either direction. E
2. 3.Show
   If gloves are required, don them as described in Procedure guideline 4.5: Putting on and removing non‐sterile gloves. At the end of the procedure, remove gloves first.
   The gloves are more likely to be contaminated than the apron and therefore should be removed first to prevent cross‐contamination (DH [23], C).
3. 4.Show
   Remove the apron by breaking the ties and neck loop. Then grasp the inside of the apron roll it up (Action figure 4.22).
   The inside of the apron should be clean. E

Post‐procedure

1. 5.Show
   Dispose of the used apron immediately in the appropriate bin.
   Waste that is not contaminated with any infectious material should be disposed of in the ‘offensive waste’ stream. This is usually a yellow and black ‘tiger stripe’ bag. If the apron has been used to deal with any infectious agents thought to pose a particular risk, it should be disposed of as hazardous infectious waste in an orange or yellow bag (DH [25], C).
2. 6.Show
   After removing the apron, decontaminate hands.
   Hands may have become contaminated (NHS England and NHSI [82], C).