[dbussone]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

There's a whole staff of assistants in the operating room. How about the person who hands instruments to the doctor?

The reason I ask is because I watched my hygienist put gloves on last time I went for a cleaning. She first touched many different items in the room, including her computer keyboard etc. Then when she was ready to get started, she pulled hard to get the gloves out of the box. In doing so, she put her hands all over the gloves before putting them on.

Is that the way operating room assistants do it in the operating room? How would we know? All it takes is one weak link in the chain.

There are different reasons for gloves. In the case of an OR team, they wear gloves to maintain sterility and avoid/prevent patient infections. For most dental procedures the staff is not generally concerned about maintaining a sterile field. The gloves and face shields they wear are to protect them primarily from YOUR germs.