PPE – Best Practice and Guidelines

Anesthesiologists in Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital, San Pedro Sula, Honduras wearing PPE purchased with support by Lifebox, April 2020.
Healthcare workers can be placed at risk in the workplace through exposure to viral and bacterial pathogens. The mission of Lifebox – to improve surgical safety – extends to the safety of healthcare workers caring for patients in clinical care areas, as well as performing surgical instrument decontamination and materials reprocessing. A key element of healthcare worker safety is the correct and rational use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the workplace. In resource limited settings, safely preserving and reusing PPE can also extend the life of materials in short supply. This page will provide practical instruction and guidance on evidence-based practices for PPE donning, doffing and reprocessing in resource-constrained settings.
Donning, Doffing, and Reprocessing of PPE
Video available in Spanish, and subtitled versions in French, Hindi and English
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Donning and Doffing PPE INFOGRAPHIC
Download the infographic in ENGLISH, ESPAÑOL, FRANÇAIS, and PORTUGUÊS
Appropriate Use and Reuse of PPE: POSTER
Download the poster in English, বাংলা, ESPAÑOL, FRANÇAIS, and PORTUGUÊS
Webinar: N95 Decontamination and Reuse
Global PPE Guidelines for Donning & Doffing
- • WHO: Infection Prevention and Control
- • WHO: Rational Use of Personal Protective Equipment for Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) and Considerations during Severe Shortages
- • CDC: Infection Control Guidelines and Guidance Library
- • SPECT – Sterile Processing Education Charitable Trust
- • COVID-19 PPE Infographic; Reference Sheet; Technical Support
PPE Reprocessing
- • N95DECON
- • WHO: COVID-19 Country & Technical Guidance
- • CDC: National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Division of Viral Diseases. Operational Considerations for Personal Protective Equipment in the Context of Global Supply Shortages for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic: non-US Healthcare Settings.
- • CDC: National Center for Immunization and respiratory Diseases, Division of Viral Diseases. Strategies to Optimize the Supply of PPE and Equipment.
- • CDC: Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of Facemasks
N95 Fit Testing & Seal Check
- • Danyluk, Q., Hon, C.-Y., Neudorf, M., Yassi, A., Bryce, E., Janssen, B., & Astrakianakis, G. (2011). Health care workers and respiratory protection: is the user seal check a surrogate for respirator fit-testing? Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, 8(5), 267–270.
- • Derrick, J. L., Chan, Y. F., Gomersall, C. D., & Lui, S. F. (2005). Predictive value of the user seal check in determining half-face respirator fit. The Journal of Hospital Infection, 59(2), 152–155.
- • Statnews.com: Without training, N95 masks may not protect workers on the Covid-19 frontlines