Ebola is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with a strain of Ebola virus. The 2014 Ebola epidemic is the largest in history, affecting multiple countries in West Africa. 

When an infection occurs in humans, the virus can be spread to others through direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes in, for example, the eyes, nose, or mouth) with

• Blood or body fluids (including but not limited to urine, saliva, sweat, feces, vomit, breast milk, and semen) of a person who is sick with or has died from Ebola,
• Objects (like needles and syringes) that have been contaminated with body fluids from a person who is sick with Ebola or the body of a person who has died from Ebola,
• Infected fruit bats or primates (apes and monkeys), and
• Possibly from contact with semen from a man who has recovered from Ebola (for example, by having oral, vaginal, or anal sex) 

And, with high heat and humidity, dextrous de-gloving gets really difficult. There are high risks of tearing the gloves and high risks of contaminating the inner glove or the bare skin in contact.

 

I have developed a sticker, which the user sticks on underside of glove. It can be bent and pinched from the outside for easier removal when the time comes. The sticker allows the user to grab each glove firmly and safely without tearing the glove material or touching the skin with other contaminated hands. It is a very simple and low cost product that can improve doffing procedure (removing the personal protective equipment) involving Ebola health care.

The sticker is attached to the inside surface of the glove at the wrist before it is donned. When the wearers wish to doff the glove, they bend the sticker inward; this creates a space inside the glove that allows the wearers to grasp
the outer glove without touching the sleeve or inner glove -- thereby avoiding the transfer of viral matter to those surfaces. The disposable sticker can be manufactured cheaply, distributed easily throughout both the developed and developing worlds, and attached to any glove to facilitate its safe removal.

Through the pilot test I could recognize five different methods to doff the gloves: “Using thumb under the glove,” “Crawling,” “Pinching the glove,” “Placing fingers under the glove,” and “Pinching  the end glove.” Most of the participants preferred the “Using thumb” method, because it was an easy and quick technique. However, they would use the “Pinching the glove” method, if they could avoid the direct contact contamination.

A glove removal device that addresses a deadly threat of self-contamination during doffing (removing) procedure involving Ebola health care