Which describes the proper hand hygiene protocol before patient contact?

• A. Wash hands with water only after patient contact
• B. Wear gloves first and then sanitize
• C. Hand hygiene is optional before patient contact
• D. Sanitize hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand sanitizer, then put on gloves as needed. Perform before and after patient contact and after removing gloves.

Answer: (D)

Front-line infection control hinges on clean hands before touching a patient. Hand hygiene right before contact removes transient skin flora, reducing the chance of transmission, and you continue to clean after contact and after removing gloves to catch any contamination that occurred during the encounter or glove removal. The best approach allows either soap and water or alcohol-based hand sanitizer for the cleaning step, and you only wear gloves after you’ve cleaned your hands when the task requires them. This sequence—clean hands, don gloves if needed, perform patient contact, and then clean again after removing gloves—embodies the proper protocol. When hands are visibly dirty, soap and water is preferred; otherwise, an alcohol-based sanitizer is effective and convenient.