How to use standard precautions
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In VMS you practice it on the patient.
Standard precautions apply to every patient, every time. They assume any blood or body fluid could carry infection.
Step by step
Clean your hands
Before and after patient contact, after touching surroundings and after removing gloves. [1]
Wear gloves when needed
Use gloves for contact with blood, body fluids, mucous membranes or broken skin. [2]
Add PPE by risk
Add a gown, mask and eye protection if splashes or sprays are likely. [2]
Handle sharps safely
Do not recap needles. Drop them straight into a sharps container. [2]
Respiratory etiquette
Offer a mask to coughing patients and keep space between people when possible. [2]
Clean equipment
Disinfect shared equipment between patients. [2]
Handle linen and waste
Hold soiled linen away from your body and use the right waste bins. [2]
Common errors
- Thinking gloves replace hand hygiene.
- Recapping needles.
- Skipping eye protection when splashes are likely.
Practice it in VMS
In VMS you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
VMS cases that train this skill
Sources
- CDC, Hand Hygiene in Healthcare Settings
- CDC, Guideline for Isolation Precautions (2007) and PPE sequence
Facts and steps follow CDC, Guideline for Isolation Precautions (2007) and PPE sequence. VMS is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.