Safety is one of the major issues for all type of laborers. Every year, several accidents happen often in the construction industry and often it is due to negligence or due to absence of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) or failure to wear them. PPE is an equipment that will not only protect workers against health or safety risks at work but also otherwise. The main aim is to lower the employee exposure to accidents during the time when engineering and administrative controls are not effective to reduce these risks to acceptable levels. These risks can be anything from wet floors to falling debris and everything in between. PPE includes items such as face shields, protective helmets, eye protection, safety footwear and respiratory protective equipment.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
PPE is used so that we can protect us also another around us. PPE is a priority for all frontline workers around the globe. This means that we have to be very conscious and update it prevention and control measures and proper implementation of PPE kits.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), PPE “consists of garments to protect the health care workers or any other persons to get infected”. Medical PPE most notably includes masks, face shields, gloves, goggles, face protection, rubber footwear and head coverings.
Types of PPE
- Masks - covers the mouth and nasal passage. Some masks have a see through plastic material which is also used for covering your eyes. A special respiratory mask, a tight seal around the nose and mouth. It can be beneficial to limit the inhaling smaller particles or viruses, such as TB bacteria.
- Eye protection - to protect the eyes one can use goggles or face shields as they can help protect the mucous membranes of the eyes for body fluids. If other fluids, try to make any contact with the eyes from body fluids.
- Gloves - it protects the hands from harmful microorganisms and limits the possibility of spreading microbes.
- Clothing - it includes aprons, gowns, head covering and shoe covers.
Essential PPE Required
Personal protective clothing in the healthcare sector is used for controlling any kind of infection. PPE acts as a barrier between infectious materials present in and around respiratory organs.
PPE also helps us protect those from high risk of contracting infections, such as those with some kind of medical condition, or from being exposed to some potentially infectious material which could have been brought in by some staff members or visitors. PPE kits are specifically designed like disposable clothing so it can be effectively removed and disposed off immediately after a wear, often in special waste containers, to protect others from exposure to any kind of germs.
- A long sleeves gown and plastic gloves can be used in order to refrain the liquids from touching your skin.
- Also you may need to wear shoe covers, goggles to help you protect from any kind of infections or microbes.
Every workplace generally specifies when and how one must use a PPE kit and it should be used by which individuals or workers.
Different PPE kits are used in different situations in every healthcare sector. Disposable Work wear that does not allow discerning of any chemical or biological agent can be used for protecting the body. Face Masks like N95 and N97 are suitable for fighting against harmful air borne pathogens, preventing them to enter the human body through the nasal tract or the mouth. In the same way, Face Shields are used to as a barrier for protecting the eyes, nose and mouth of the person.
There are some important rules that must be considered while protecting the health and safety of doctors, nurses and other healthcare members. First step is to develop awareness on choosing the right PPE depending on a particular situation. Moreover, it’s very imperative to get the required training on how to wear and handle different kinds of PPE and making sure to understand the appropriate disposal and storage methods as per health ministry regulations. With any type of harmful waste, there is always a chance of cross-contamination, so any medical PPE has to be properly disposed of to avoid any such hazards.
With that we are hoping that the world will be able to beat this pandemic with coherent efforts and we will never forget the lessons it taught us. It is very important to follow personal safety need as that the priority for everyone around the world.
