Abstract
This study was conducted by the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in conjunction with NIOSH. The impetus behind this study was twofold. First, the study was intended to identify, or at least clarify, what hospitals are doing in terms of reducing the risks of latex allergy to employees. Second, the study was intended to determine whether the NIOSH Alert on Preventing Allergic Reactions to Natural Rubber Latex had any effects and under what conditions. For hospitals, the most effective way to reduce the risk of latex allergy to workers lies in the adoption of particular administrative controls or policies. The Alert makes several recommendations, including that health care workers use powder-free reduced protein latex gloves rather than powdered latex gloves (Heilman et al., 1996).