52° F 
February 12, 2011
Yellow Gowns and Controlling Infections
If you’ve visited Carmel Hills Care Center recently, you’ve probably seen individuals in yellow gowns. Or perhaps you are required to put one on before entering the room of the resident you are visiting. And you are probably wondering, what’s this all about?
At Carmel Hills, we have chosen to be a facility that manages severe infections; infections that often involve hospitalization. By managing the infections within the facility, we can accomplish a few things. Primarily, we keep individuals out of the hospital and continue therapy, aiding the recovery process.
In the process, some individuals are required to be on isolation to prevent the spread of the infection to the rest of our community. In order to visit these individuals, everyone that enters the isolated room is required to wear an isolation gown, gloves and sometimes a mask. What this accomplishes is the prevention of the bacteria or virus from getting on the visitor and then leaving the room with them.
It is important to remember that the gown doesn’t just provide a barrier, but by removing the gown before leaving the room, you also leave the contaminated articles in the room. Walking out of the room with the gown or gloves still on may keep you infection free, but you’ve now infected everything out side of the room. As always, our staff is available to answer questions regarding the gowns, proper use and assist putting them on or removing them.
