Employees should follow general facility PPE guidelines along with potential enhanced PPE guidelines.
Masks, protective eyewear, and face shields should be worn during processes or procedures that are likely to generate splashes or sprays of blood or other body fluids to prevent exposure of mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, and eyes.
Masks
Wear a surgical or cloth mask to prevent asymptomatic spread to others.
Face masks are required PPE for a very limited number of pandemic response and management personnel within each facility:
- Medical and isolation team members
- Shift health screeners
- Disinfection team members
- Those with broad exposure to other employees (e.g. cafeteria workers and security guards)
Note: N95, FFP2(3), or equivalent protection must be prioritized for use by isolation and medical team members as they are more likely to be exposed to employees who are COVID-19 symptomatic.
Face Shields
Face shields may be worn as a precautionary measure when employees working within 1 meter (3 feet) of other employees.
Gloves
Based on CDC findings, the facilities do not need to require or recommend that employees wear gloves except for: 1. Isolation Team Members and, 2. Those performing disinfection of common surfaces per the Playbook. However, the company should provide gloves if mandated by local laws.
Gloves are to be worn:
- To provide a protective barrier and prevent gross contamination of the hands.
- For contact with any blood, body fluids, secretions, excretions, and/or contaminated linens.
- For touching mucous membranes, or on-intact skin of all persons.
- For handling items of surfaces soiled with blood or body fluids.
- For performing venipuncture and other vascular access procedures.
Precautionary notes:
- Proper removal of gloves takes training; if contaminated gloves are not removed properly, employees are exposed to greater risk.
- Gloves should be changed after contact with each person, and between sites or tasks (i.e., when moving from a dirty site to a clean site).
- The COVID-19 virus does not harm your hands, so gloves provide no protection, and touching your face with contaminated hands, whether gloved or not, poses a significant risk of infection.
- Gloves often create a false sense of security for the individuals wearing them; people are more likely to touch contaminated surfaces because they feel they are protected from the virus because of the gloves when in reality, they are not.
- When wearing gloves, people are less inclined to wash their hands; this is counterproductive and puts others at higher risk; we want people to wash their hands because it is the number-one defense against any virus.
- The use of gloves does not replace the need for hand hygiene.
- Gloves and any other disposable PPE used for cleaning and disinfecting surfaces should be removed and disposed of after cleaning; washing hands immediately after removal of gloves and PPE with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
Gowns or Aprons
- Gloves or aprons are to be worn during processes or procedures that are likely to generate splashes of blood or body fluids.
- Select a gown or apron that is appropriate for the activity and amount of fluid likely to be encountered.
- Always remove the gown or apron prior to leaving that work environment.
- If disposable gowns or aprons are not worn, work uniforms/clothes worn during cleaning and disinfecting should be laundered afterwards using the warmest appropriate water setting and dry items completely. Wash hands after handling laundry.
