I understand wearing gloves when there are open sores and/or bodily fluids...but otherwise, putting on a glove to touch a patient's intact skin may be somewhat offensive to the patient. It sends the message that you see them as unclean and that you feel the need to protect yourself from them. This hinders the patient-doctor relationship.
A great blog article I read on this that I mostly agree with: Touch your patient. Don’t wear gloves.
A great blog article I read on this that I mostly agree with: Touch your patient. Don’t wear gloves.