Shoes, Jewelry, and Nails.. Oh My!!!

For my final blog on surgical attire I am going to touch on things like shoes and shoe coverings, jewelry, and nails

SHOES

We stand on our feet all day long, so shoes are important.  The AORN recommendation states that shoes should be clean with a close toe and back as well as low heel (really??? Who would wear high heels??) and non slip soles. 

 

 

Shoes should not be made of cloth or those that have holes or perforations as this poses a threat to needle sticks, scalpel cuts, and splashes from blood or other body fluids. 

 

What about shoe coverings??  AORN states that as long as the above recommendations are in place, and the shoes are designated only to OR use, then shoe coverings are not needed. 

And what about those surgeons (you know there is one in every institution) that has not cleaned their shoes since they started????  

Sorry about the blurriness of the picture… had to take it on the fly!

JEWELRY!!!

Ok, jewelry.  AORN states that nurses (or physicians) should not wear jewelry such as earrings, necklaces, watches or bracelets that can not be contained within the surgical attire.  This is due to the risk of infections.  Not infecting the patient, but infecting the staff.  It has been shown that microorganisms can be trapped under or in jewelry which can then cause a problem to the staff..  YUCK!.  

In addition, jewelry can be caught on equipment causing injury.  It is recommended that staff leave jewelry in their locker or pin them to their clothing.

That's me in the middle being guilty of wearing earrings

NAILS AND POLISH

Now let talk nails and nail polish. 

This is another of those touchy subjects in my OR.  According to AORN, nail polish that is unchipped may be worn.  Once polish starts to chip, studies have shown that microorganisms begin to fester once chipping begins.

As for fake nails, the obvious is that AORN says they should not be worn.  AORN defines any fingernail enhancement, resin bonding, extensions, tips, acrylics, or gels.  Ok… GELS.  Here is the question.  With the new polishing technique of gel polish, does this fall under the category of artificial nail or just plain polish (which can be worn)?  No position has been made by AORN so for now Gel polish is allowed but gel fillers are not.

Here is someone at work guilty of wearing polish AND jewelry

Well that's it folks.  I hope you have enjoyed this blog as much as I have enjoyed preparing it.