ppe

PPE and face protection

Fiona Smith and IPC

Current UHCW guidance and advice

• As the government guidance surrounding face
masks has changed and there's been a
backstepping of advice clinically many staff have
not surprisingly become a bit confused.

• What follows is advice from Infection Prevention
& Control, which is based on the current standard
infection prevention and control guideline which
has not altered recently and still in place, plus
their latest recommendations surrounding face
masks. Both publications can be found on intranet

Current trust guidance on PPE

Caring for Covid Positive women

• Firstly put a PURPLE
hand sign on door
(available on IPC intranet
page)
• Remember PURPLE for

POSITIVE!
• This to alert everyone of
need for appropriate PPE

PPE needed for midwife or anyone within
2 metres of Positive woman antenatally,

intrapartum or past natally

• FFP3 mask. No if or buts. This is to
protect YOU

• Plastic apron/water-resistant gown
• Gloves
• If any bodily fluids present such as

blood, liquor or spittle from Entenox
mouthpiece then a FACE VISOR, not
goggles or glasses This is to stop
splashes on your face and becoming
a contamination risk

Why?

• This is standard precautions for any aerosol
spread respiratory infection. This is both covid and
influenza

• As covid is now endemic rather than epidemic is
now classified with respiratory disease but the
precautions are not reduced

• In these women use of PPE is to minimize
infection risk to staff and others

• The concern is her positive status and not
performing an Aerosol Generating Procedure

PPE for ANY delivery

From UHCW NHS trust Standard Infection
Prevention and Control Precautions Guideline

“Full body gowns/Fluid repellent coveralls

• Full body fluid repellent gowns should be worn
where there is a risk of extensive splashing of
blood, body fluids, secretions and excretions, onto
the skin of health care practitioners, when
providing personal care to patients with multi
resistant organisms & when carrying out aerosol
generating procedures with patients with
respiratory viruses.

• Changed between patients and immediately after
completion of a procedure or task. “

• A plastic apron is insufficient to meet with trust

guidelines

• Remember this is to protect YOU

Face/eye protection for any procedure
involving potential contamination form a
bodily fluid regardless of covid status

• From UHCW NHS trust Standard Infection
Prevention and Control Precautions Guideline

“Masks and Eye/face protection (including full face
visors)

Face masks and visors must be:
worn if splashing or spraying of blood, body fluids,
secretions or excretions onto the respiratory mucosa
(nose and mouth) is anticipated/likely”
Once again this is for your protection. Any fluid can
land on your face and be inadvertently swallowed or
enter mucus membranes

Where it gets confusing at times

• Outside the 2 metre zone you
must still carry out hand hygiene
on entering room.

• But if you are doing a non patient
contact task e.g. Fresh Eyes,
relaying a message, removing
trays etc then a fluid resistant
mask is acceptable

• If not sure that you may breech
the 2 metre rule, then use an
FFP3

On wards

• Ideally isolated in side room but
can cohort more than one positive
women in an identified bay of covid
positive only women

• Again the 2 metre rule applies
regards of location

• So if giving direct patient contact
an FFP3 must be worn.

• A PURPLE hand sign must be
displayed outside room/covid bay

Eye protection on wards for Positive
women

• This needs to be risk
assessed according to
task. If bodily fluids
present such as liquor
blood then face visor
worn

• Think about splash
incidents risk when
removing cannulas or
catheter

Where it can get confusing at times

• Outside the 2 metre zone you
must still carry out hand hygiene
on entering room.

• But if you are doing a non patient
contact task e.g. titrating
syntocinon, relying a message,
removing trays etc then a fluid
resistant mask is acceptable

• If not sure that you may breech
the 2 metre rule then use an
FFP3

To summarise

• Guidance has been confusing lately so no
surprise staff unsure of what face mask to
wear

• For Positive women an FFP3 should be worn
when LESS than 2 metres away from her

• If more use your clinical judgment to risk her
Positive status may have on you