Can a dental hygienist tell a dentist to put on clean gloves?
If a dental hygienist notices that a dentist forgot to put on a fresh pair of gloves between patients, would it be okay for her to say something to the dentist (in front of the patient)? What would be the best way to solve this problem? The dentist has done this on occasion before.
Tagged with: dentist • fresh pair • gloves
Filed under: Dental Insurance
yes
I think so because it involves the patient directly. Maybe hand the dentist gloves in front of the patient, and then speak to him privately afterward. That is, if you don’t have a chance to just talk to him the next time you see him
Ask him to step out in the hall with you, and explain the situation there.
Or…. you can have fresh gloves laid out for him when he comes in. When he sees them, he will remember to change them.
Um, yea!
I mean, you might get grossed out that they said it in front of you but at least you’re gonna get checked with clean gloves!
Um…you could ask him if he put on clean gloves….
I have experienced this in my hygiene career and sometimes it is a careless dentist (or other staff member) and sometimes it is an honest mistake. A couple of ways I have handled this are -
1. said nothing that would alert the patient and handed them a new pair of gloves prior to them getting into the mouth
2. asked them if I could speak to them for a minute outside the room and let them know
3. just made eye contact with the Dr. and pointed to the gloves on their hands to jog their memory
4. held out the box of gloves at them
(I have attempted to do all of these behind the patients head or at least out of the line of site, because who wants to be shown their wrong in front of the patient or staff)
If you think it is a ongoing problem and you feel that the dentist will get upset or be offended, you might opt to hold onto the mirror and explorer (so they can’t do the exam) until you see they have changed their gloves and if they haven’t, hand them gloves first and then the instruments.Or maybe leave a new set of gloves on top of the instruments on the tray so they can’t get to the instruments without seeing them.
If this is a constant obvious problem and their are copious amounts of other "dirty" offenses you might see if you can make some positive changes in the practice or find a different practice to work in. Honestly, I graduated 15 years ago and alot has changed, so if the Dr. you are working for is older they may just not know about the newer protocols. There is an awful lot of new information to take in all the time, but basic cleanliness is an issue that cannot be compromised since some medically compromised patients could be severly affected….Not only are you able, but you must address the issue for everyone’s safety. After all, if dirty gloves are going into a patient’s mouth, what else are they touching the bathroom doorknob? (that you are going to end up touching with your bare hands?)
Good luck + hope that helps!
JAMRDH -a dental hygienist