In healthcare, discussions regarding hands largely revolve around hand hygiene for infection control purposes. While the discussion of hand hygiene is undoubtedly important for patient care, care of clinicians' hands is often left out of the conversation.
In an informal survey conducted by Medline University, Mundelein, Ill.-based Medline's online clinical education resource, most of the surveyed nurses — 44.5 percent — indicated their hands felt dry and itchy during a regular shift. What's more, 13.9 percent of surveyed nurses said they have considered leaving the healthcare field due to dry, irritated or damaged hands.
"When you think about what hands do in the course of a shift and the amount of impact hands have and the vigilance we have about keeping those hands from transmitting infections, we really start to understand that these hands go through a lot," says Martie Moore, RN, CNO of Mundelein, Ill.-based Medline.
Hands are two of clinicians', especially nurses', main tools, says Ms. Moore, who herself has been challenged by hand discomfort. Ms. Moore also has known colleagues who have actually left the profession because their hands became so irritated that they felt it was unsafe for them to practice.
The constant application of chemicals and hand rubs contributes to dryness and microcuts in the skin that are further aggravated every time clinicians perform proper hand hygiene protocol.
"When you think about the work clinicians do, the skin has to be protected," says Ms. Moore. "It has to be preserved and has to be nurtured because it's truly one of their first lines of defenses as a care provider."
Furthermore, there is an inextricable link between clinician hand care and hand hygiene, which emphasizes the importance that clinicians need to prioritize caring for their own hands.
"There needs to be a focus on skin care, as well, to be compliant," Ms. Moore says. "If your hands are hurting, you are more likely to have an issue [following hand hygiene protocol]."
According to the Medline University survey, 70.6 percent of nurses said they would be more hand hygiene-compliant if their hands felt better. More than half of surveyed nurses said they use hospital-grade lotion to help heal irritated hands.
Suppliers like Medline are developing products to address this issue of clinician hand health. For example, Medline recently released its Restore exam glove that is lined with colloidal oatmeal, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has indicated to help relieve minor hand irritation.
At the end of the day, or at the end of a shift, hand irritation has lasting consequences for clinicians. Ms. Moore says clinician hand care is important because hands in healthcare are important.
"Hands can provide comfort. They can save a life," she says. "When you think of nurses and look at pictures, it's a hand holding a hand, a hand on a shoulder, a hand on the arm….The presence of hands is so powerful."
More articles on hand hygiene:
Increased monitoring, immediate feedback boost hand hygiene compliance, study finds
5 most popular hand hygiene stories from September
Study: Long, busy shifts lower hand hygiene compliance by nearly 9%