The way it was.

cyclophosphamide IV

When I was in graduate school in the mid-1970s, I had a part-time job working for a physician group that treated patients with blood cancers, mostly leukemia and lymphomas. I started the IVs and administered chemotherapy, which typically included drugs such as vincristine, nitrogen mustard, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide.

I drew up the medications in a utility room—there was no special fume hood to clean the air. Initially, I did not use either a protective gown or gloves; after a bout of contact dermatitis on my hands, I used gloves, but I never used a gown. At that time, there were no guidelines for those of us who administered the drugs. Given what is known today about the reproductive toxicity of many of these drugs, I was fortunate that my exposure was short-term and before I became pregnant.

Do nurses follow today’s guidelines?

Today, there are clear recommendations for using personal protective equipment (PPE) like gloves and gowns when administering these hazardous agents. Yet, surprisingly, many nurses—even pregnant nurses—don’t follow them, according to a study published in AJN’s January issue.

In “Antineoplastic Drug Administration by Pregnant and Nonpregnant Nurses: An Exploration of the Use of Protective Gloves and Gowns,” the researchers used data from the Nurses Health Study 3 to assess the […]