Penn Study Stethoscopes Are Loaded With Bacteria
Nurses use stethoscopes every day and assess many patients each day during physical exams. Stethoscopes can become a breeding ground of bacteria and should be cleaned after each patient. Using a 70% alcohol pads and wipe the diaphragm after each use. You can also use a larger alcohol wipe at the beginning and end of each shift. Large alcohol wipes like here. Make sure you are using a 70% alcohol.
According to a recent article Penn professor: stethoscope are loaded with bacteria
General Stethoscopes Cleaning Tips
According to Littman , Stethoscope cleaning recommendations are as follows:
General cleaning tips
- If your stethoscope needs to be disinfected, wipe with a 70% isopropyl alcohol solution.
- Do not use hand sanitizer as a cleaning agent as there are additives that may damage parts of the stethoscope.
- Do not immerse your stethoscope in any liquid, or subject it to any sterilization process.
- Keep your stethoscope away from extreme heat, cold, solvents and oils.
- Tunable diaphragms can be removed from the chest piece and their surfaces wiped with alcohol or soapy water. Dry all parts thoroughly before reassembly.
- Eartips can be removed from the eartubes for thorough cleaning. For safety, snap eartips firmly back onto the ribbed ends of the eartubes.
Why Become A Nurse? This Nurse Answers The Question Why She Chose Nursing Over Becoming A Doctor
When was the last time someone asked you “why become a nurse?”. It is as if being a nurse is lesser than becoming a doctor. This nurse slams people looking down on the nursing profession by saying that nursing is entirely different from being a doctor. Nursing should not be a stepping stone to becoming a doctor.
When asked why a nurse and not a doctor, she answered that she prefers the caring, psychosocial model of nursing over the strict study of anatomy that comes with studying medicine. She also prefers having more time to herself and her family. When you’re a doctor, especially if you’re in primary care, you have to take extra work home. You will also have to be on call 24/7.
You might share the same heart for nursing. Watch her on-point video here: Why I Chose to Be A Nurse Instead of A Doctor