Being a lab office manager in charge of supplying a team of technicians and specialists with PPE can be as nerve-racking as working with the hazardous substances yourself! And when you’re finding the perfect set of gloves for hygiene and infection prevention in your specific environment, it pays to get it right the first time. Plus with ever-tightening budgets, ordering the wrong set of gloves is not only embarrassing, it wastes precious resources.
The type of gloves you choose for your lab depends on the nature of work, and typical hazards staff may encounter. These failsafe tips will help you choose the glove type best suited to your specific needs and environment:
The best way to find the right gloves for your lab is to ask the people who’ll be using them. Projects, circumstances, and hazardous substances may change regularly in your lab. The technicians who use PPE daily will be able to list exactly what they need from a glove, even if they can’t identify the name, type, or ideal brand. Get a few leading questions together on their preferred brands, and illustrate common use cases.
Before placing an order, consider how the gloves will be used. Will there be contact with hazardous substances? If so is it usually incidental, or extended? Is puncture resistance important? If you’ve joined a lab as a lab office manager and had no briefing or documentation to help with this, asking the team about use cases will help identify the right gloves to order. Also keep an eye out for resources, like the OSHA PPE Guide, or our blog post What’s The Difference Between Nitrile, Latex and Vinyl Gloves?, that can help you match these use cases to a suitable glove type.
Select your suppliers with care. Engaging with a company you can trust is foundational to equipping your team with the best gloves for the job: first time, every time. Check that your shortlisted suppliers follow best practices for health and safety, customer service, and sustainability. For example, do they, like Ventyv® , have (and enact) a “green policy”?
Building partnerships in infection prevention
These tips will help you minimize the risks of making incorrect glove orders. Choosing one supplier with a wide range of gloves can provide consistency and ensure operational efficiencies that keep your staff safe, happy, and productive.
At Ventyv® we’re committed to helping lab teams Outsmart Infection® — more than just a supplier, we aim to be your partner in infection prevention. We supply a wide range of cutting edge gloves to our long-standing clients to create a safer world, together. What’s more, the Ventyv® website allows you to filter products by specific markets, so you always get exactly what you need, right the first time. Check it out for yourself on our products page, and filter by one of the following uses: medical, dental, veterinary, lab, physician office, or surgery center.
And, to learn more about our products and stay up to date on the latest updates on gloves for your lab and infection prevention practices, subscribe to our blog.