Antineoplastic agents and the use of personal protective equipment: nursing staff awareness

Introduction. Along with an increasing number of cancer patients, the need for cytostatic drugs is also increasing. Nursing staff are the largest professional group exposed to the potential dangers of these substances. Aim of the study. Assess the awareness of nursing staff who have direct contact with cytostatic drugs in the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). Material and methods. The research group consisted of 101 nurses routinely exposed to cytostatic drugs. A diagnostic survey and questionnaire technique were used along with the author’s original questionnaire. Results. Of the respondents, 58.42% (n=59) never used protective shoes while dealing with cytostatics, while 53.4% (n…