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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 June 2016
Patient blood is recognized as a dangerous substance because it may contain infectious agents. While the practice of gloving provides some protection to hospital personnel exposed to instruments contaminated with patient blood, frequent breaks in techniques occur in which personnel inadvertently touch surfaces and objects in the environment with the potentially contaminated gloves. Also, “cleaned” instruments are placed on environmental surfaces to which other personnel are exposed. The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of blood contamination of “cleaned” instruments used for patient procedures in the hospital, and on the gloved hands of central sterile supply (CSS) personnel handling those instruments.