ITC [Infection Control Today]

While the healthcare community at large and the infection prevention community in specific continue to debate the wearing-scrubs-on-the-street issue, an interesting snippet appears in today’s New York Times. Writer C. Claiborne Ray, writes, “Though a bigger infection risk to hospital patients lies in the failure by hospital staff members to thoroughly wash their hands between patients and procedures, contaminated scrubs can be a risk both inside and outside the hospital. Using scrubs as streetwear may threaten not only patients’ health, but also the health of people outside the hospital, infection control experts say.” Ray then points to the study that appeared in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology in 2000 which revealed that bacteria survived for long periods on fabrics commonly found in the hospital environment, including scrubs, lab coats, and privacy curtains. Ray notes, “Many hospitals recommend or require that staff members who come into contact with patients use only hospital-laundered protective garments and change them when they become soiled. The risk of carrying blood and other contaminated body fluids out of the hospital is the basis for the rules at many hospitals that surgical garb must stay inside the building. For just one example, the rules for surgical residents at the College of Medicine at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign state: ‘Scrubs are not to be worn outside the hospital or taken home. This rule will be strictly enforced without exception. Taking soiled surgical attire from the operating room into the home can result in the spread of potential contamination to the home environment.’” What's your take on this issue? Drop me a line at kpyrek@vpico.com or submit your comments online. We'll explore this debate in an upcoming issue of ICT.