Removal of PPE – Contaminated Staff

Infection Prevention & Control Team

Principles

• There has been some concern why healthcare staff in the US and Spain have acquired Ebola from repatriated patients and a significant number of healthcare staff have acquired the disease in West Africa

• Failure in the PPE or failure to follow protocols when getting out of PPE have been blamed but the cause of these healthcare acquired infections remains unclear

Principles (2)

• The purpose of this procedure is to ensure that staff in contact with an “at risk” patient remove PPE with the minimum contact of potentially contaminated PPE with themselves

• An “undresser” who will also be dressed in PPE will remove the PPE of contaminated staff

• Undressing will take place in a contaminated buffer zone, which is marked in amber on the floor plans (according to where the patient is isolated)

Step 1• Contaminated

staff leave the patient’s room and enter the undressing area

Undresser

UNDRESSING AREA

CLEAN ZONE

Step 2• Undresser unties the

gown

Step 3• Placing hands beneath

the gown, push the gown forwards over the arms

• If there is a second contaminated person, then repeat before proceeding further

Step 4• Roll the gown

forwards, ensuring the outside of the gown does not touch the all-in-one oversuit

• If possible, take the outer gloves off with the all-in-one oversuit

Step 5• Dispose of the gown• Staff member being

undressed to keep their hands away from their body

Step 6• Remove outer gloves

if they have not already come off, taking care not to pull inner gloves off

• Undresser dips hands in Actichlor plus (hypochlorite) solution

Step 7• Remove visor,

pulling forwards and away from the face

• Dip hands in Actichlor plus (hypochlorite)

Step 8• Fully undo zip to

all-in-one oversuit

Step 9• Roll all-in-one

oversuit down, avoiding the outside of the oversuit touching either the scrubs or skin

Step 10• Continue to roll the

all-in-one oversuit down, avoiding the outside of the oversuit touching either the scrubs or skin

Step 11• Roll all-in-one oversuit

down the body• NB: gloves may come

off during this process

Step 12• Continue to roll

all-in-one oversuit down to knees

Step 13• Person being

undressed shuffles back to a chair on the clean/dirty line, ensuring gloved hands do not touch skin/scrubs

Step 14• One trouser leg of

all-in-one oversuit, shoe and overboot removed and disposed of

Step 15• Person being

undressed avoids putting foot on the floor, or puts foot on the INSIDE of the all-in-one oversuit

Step 16• Undressed person

places foot into the clean area

Step 17• Undresser removes

all-in-one oversuit, second shoe and overboot

• NB: a third person in the clean area can support the person sitting in the chair

Step 18• Undressed person

places second foot into the clean area

• Gloved hands kept over contaminated area

Step 19• Inner gloves

removed

Step 20• Straps to face mask

and goggles can be cut by a 3rd person in the clean area

• They are taken by the undresser and disposed of within the undressing area

• Individual can now leave clean area for shower