Pre‐procedure

ActionRationale

1. 1.Show
   Clean hands using soap and water or an alcohol‐based handrub.
   Hands must be cleansed before and after every patient contact or contact with a patient's equipment (NHS England and NHSI [82], C).
2. 2.Show
   Prepare all the equipment required for the procedure, including setting up the sterile field and tipping sterile items onto it from packets if you do not have an assistant, but do not touch any sterile items before putting on gloves.
   To avoid contaminating gloves with non‐sterile packets. E

Procedure

1. 3.Show
   Open the packet containing the gloves and open out the inside packaging on a clean surface so that the fingers of the gloves are pointed away from you, taking care not to touch the gloves or allow them to come into contact with anything that is non‐sterile (Action figure 4.43).
   To prevent contamination of the gloves and to place them in the best position for putting them on. E
2. 4.Show
   Clean hands again using soap and water or an alcohol‐based handrub.
   Hands must be cleansed before and after every patient contact or contact with patient's a equipment (NHS England and NHSI [82], C).
3. 5.Show
   Hold the cuff of the right‐hand glove with the left hand, at the uppermost edge where the cuff folds back on itself. Lift this edge away from the opposite edge to create an opening (Action figure 4.44). Keeping them together, slide the fingers of the hand into the glove, taking care not to contaminate the outside of the glove while keeping hold of the folded edge in the other hand and pulling the glove onto the hand (Action figure 4.45). Spread the fingers of the right hand slightly to help them enter the fingers of the glove (Action figure 4.46). Note: here and in the next step, the gloves can be put on either hand first; simply exchange ‘left’ and ‘right’ in the description if you wish to put on the left‐hand glove first.
   To prevent contamination of the outside of the glove. E
4. 6.Show
   Open up the left‐hand glove with your right‐hand fingertips by sliding them beneath the folded‐back cuff. Taking care not to touch the right‐hand glove or the outside of the left‐hand glove with your left hand, and keeping the fingers together, slide the fingers of your left hand into the left‐hand glove (Action figures 4.47 and 4.48).
   To prevent contamination of the outside of the glove. E
5. 7.Show
   Again, spread your fingers slightly once inside the body of the glove to help them into the glove fingers. When both gloves are on, adjust the fit by pulling on the body of the gloves to get your fingers to the ends of the glove fingers (Action figures 4.49 and 4.50).
   To ensure the gloves are comfortable to wear and do not interfere with the procedure. E

Post‐procedure

1. 8.Show
   Remove the gloves when the procedure is completed, taking care not to contaminate your hands or the environment from the outside of the gloves.
   The outside of the gloves is likely to be contaminated. E
2. 9.Show
   First, remove the first glove by firmly holding the outside of the glove wrist and pulling off the glove in such a way as to turn it inside out.
   While removing the first glove, the second gloved hand continues to be protected. By turning the glove inside out during removal, any contamination is contained inside the glove. E
3. 10.Show
   Then remove the second glove by slipping the fingers of the ungloved hand inside the wrist of the glove and pulling it off while at the same time turning it inside out.
   By putting the fingers inside the glove, the fingers will not be in contact with the potentially contaminated outer surface of the glove. E
4. 11.Show
   Dispose of used gloves as ‘hazardous infectious waste’, unless instructed otherwise by the infection prevention and control team.
   All waste contaminated with blood, body fluids, excretions, secretions and/or infectious agents thought to pose a particular risk should be disposed of as hazardous infectious waste. E
5. 12.Show
   After removing the gloves, decontaminate your hands.
   Hands may have become contaminated (NHS England and NHSI [82], C).