Question: When should you wear sterile gloves?

Answer: To protect the patient from infection during:

• Any surgical procedure
• Vaginal delivery
• Urinary catheterization
• Lumbar puncture
• Central venous access

Prior to wearing sterile surgical gloves, a surgical scrub (of hands and forearms up to the elbows) should be performed. This is more thorough than a regular washing of hands, as it aims to get rid of as many organisms from the hands as possible. This aims to avoid transmission of organisms through the glove to the patient, which risks serious infection.