Personal Protective Equipment: Evaluating Usage Among Inpatient and Outpatient Oncology Nurses.

BACKGROUND

Chemotherapy agents have long been considered hazardous, and safety for healthcare providers when administering these drugs is a primary concern. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is known to decrease exposure to hazardous drugs. Studies report that PPE is underused among healthcare providers in inpatient and outpatient settings.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of PPE among inpatient and outpatient nurses while administering hazardous chemotherapy agents.

METHODS

This cross-sectional, descriptive study used the Hazardous Drug Handling Questionnaire (HDHQ) to measure nurses' self-reported use of PPE.

FINDINGS

Results of the HDHQ indicated that nurses are not using PPE as recommended by hazardous drug administration guidelines. Interventions for proper PPE usage include interprofessional collaboration among oncology nurses, administrators, organizations, and healthcare systems to ensure the safety of healthcare providers, patients, and family caregivers.