Table 3.
Recommendations for better PPE practice
| PPE6 | As per MoH—full body suit/gown/PAPR |
| Hospital scrubs at all times | |
| Impervious plastic apron at all times | |
| N95 at all times | |
| Double gloves at all times | |
| Cap, shoe cover at all times | |
| Strengthened logistics and medical supplies to ensure adequate PPE | |
| Training8 | Mandatory training of PPE use—when, what, how, how long, limitations, care, maintenance, disposal. |
| Retraining | |
| If inadequacy in employees PPE knowledge detected. | |
| If there is change in employment | |
| If there is change in PPE | |
| Onsite training by infection control with didactic lecture, practical sessions in donning doffing and disposal. | |
| Simulations in performing AGPs while in PPE (intubation, transport, waste disposal) | |
| Online resources such as training videos created by the MoH | |
| PPE Breach9 | Prevention |
| Mandatory fit testing | |
| Buddy system | |
| Showering after patient exposure | |
| Audits of compliance check | |
| Retraining | |
| Minimal patient contact by remote monitoring and tele medicine | |
| Robust mechanisms to minimize aerosol-generation and exposure during aerosol-generation procedures | |
| In case breach | |
| Reporting to infection control | |
| Surveillance for symptoms | |
| Quarantine | |
| Re-induction | |
| Emergency surveillance system to monitor all exposed HCWs, contributing to prompt detection, effective triage, and isolation of infected HCW |
MoH, ministry of health, India; PPE, personal protective equipment; PAPR, powered air-purifying respirator; AGP, aerosol-generating procedure; HCWs, healthcare workers