PPE protects healthcare workers from two main hazards:
Biological agents transfer from person to person by direct or indirect contact. Health workers maintain close contact with patients. Thus, they need PPE that protects them from potential transmission. Important transmission pathways to mitigate with PPE include:
Person to person contact
The use of Infection prevention and control
(IPC) principles keep patients and health workers safe. IPC includes measures like: hand hygiene, PPE use and waste management materials. In addition, the WHO ensures the safety of the health workforce by providing guidance on the safe use of PPE.
Depending on the biological agent and context different recommendations apply. For example, some PPE recommended for Ebola virus disease (EVD) might not be adequate for COVID-19.
Over the years, the WHO has provided technical information on the PPE for health care workers. In some countries, PPE is considered a medical device by regulation authorities. The latest publications by WHO describe PPE in the context of:
According to this publications the main characteristics of PPE include:
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