ABSTRACT
Those who observe, work with, or are the recipients of nursing care learn a great deal from registered practitioners whether or not these nurses intend to facilitate learning, and regardless of whether this comes from positive or negative experiences. One thing that Sarah has learned from this brief and informal interaction with her mentor is that some registered nurses believe it acceptable not to wash their hands between patients. While there is always room for discretion about whether or not to wash your hands between patients (it depends, for example, on the nature of the contact and whether or not the patient is infectious or in need of protection from infection and so on) the mentor (Steve) demonstrates by his response that in general he knows full well that the staff on the ward should practise effective hand washing.
