healthcare textiles & laundry
healthcare textiles & laundry
By Gregory Gicewicz
Clean Bill of Health : Mastering Healthcare Laundry Inspections
While service level agreements ( SLAs ) are great at setting and measuring healthcare laundry expectations , at some point we need to visit the laundry and see firsthand how they operate . In fact , most healthcare accrediting agencies require that the hospital inspect their laundry and document the results , at least yearly . In the spirit of establishing a collaborative partnership , use this inspection as another valuable tool for both parties to learn from each other and improve .
I recommend not using the inspection as a “ Gotcha !” opportunity to catch your laundry in the act of some egregious behavioral infractions . Doing this will hurt trust and make it more likely that the laundry will not be as open to sharing their practices . However , I do recommend giving the laundry no more than one day ’ s notice that your team will be inspecting them . Doing this will ensure you observe them operating as they actually operate . Giving too long of a lead time gives the laundry opportunities to over-prepare for the inspection and may not present an accurate picture of how they operate on non-inspection day .
Approach your laundry inspections strategically and have a plan . Your immediate goal is to understand and document laundry practices , yet your strategic goal should be to make the laundry better so it can serve your patients better . You must arm yourself with questions prior to the visit . What do you want to learn ? What do you want to see ? Realize that a thorough and complete inspection of your healthcare laundry partner would take weeks . For this reason , use the inspection day wisely , focusing on the most critical areas that impact your hospital .
I can confidently state that hospital visits to my former laundry , especially from knowledgeable infection preventionists , resulted in our most profound improvements . Seventeen years of these impactful hospital visits , followed by suggestions and our implementations of these , resulted in a pretty bulletproof operation , with most of the big risks being mitigated . Hospitals would often remark to us after their inspections , “ Man , you guys thought of everything !” In reality , using software terms , we simply evolved from a 1.0 version healthcare laundry to a 10.0 version healthcare laundry by constantly implementing suggested changes from experts . Use the inspection to make your laundry partner better .
Be sure to bring the right hospital personnel on the visit . At a minimum , bring a senior-level environmental services manager and an infection preventionist . I recommend also bringing an outside laundry compliance expert , such as those found at Compliance Shark . They will make the visit more efficient and will know what to look for , especially the hidden landmines . They can also help the laundry by offering suggestions to make them better . To help with the hospital ’ s regulatory compliance they can provide you with needed compliance documentation you can give to your hospital ’ s accrediting agency .
Approach your laundry inspections strategically and have a plan . Your immediate goal is to understand and document laundry practices , yet , your strategic goal should be to make the laundry better so they can serve your patients better . You must arm yourself with questions prior to the visit . What do you want to learn ? What do you want to see ?”
Plan to arrive in the morning so you can see all areas of the operation . Definitely bring notebooks . Be sure to bring a checklist on the visit too . The major healthcare laundry certification and accreditation bodies offer these valuable resources for free . Cameras may or may not be permitted but pictures can be valuable teaching devices if they are allowed . Two to five hours is a reasonable amount of time to allocate for the visit , depending on the size and complexity of the operation .
A good practice is to inspect the laundry ’ s documentation first . Look at their QA manual . Examine their maintenance program . Inspect their housekeeping policies , Study their safety policies . View their bloodborne pathogens policy . You get the point . Always look for these three parts : First , is the policy up to date and specific to this location ? That is a good sign that the policy is actively used and not just “ shelfware ” to be used only for inspection day . Second , can they show signed employee training records on the policy ? A policy is useless if staff have not been properly trained on it . Third , can they show documented proof demonstrating that the policy is being followed ? For example , a housekeeping policy should be backed up with active cleaning records like checklists . A maintenance policy should have active recent maintenance records attached to it . A bloodborne pathogens policy should contain employee vaccination records . Make sure records are dated and signed . Ask for these during the documentation review .
After the documentation inspection , have the tour leader walk your team through the entire laundry process from truck unloading , to soil sorting , to washing and drying , to finishing , to pack out , and truck loading again . Note the efficiency with how the goods flow through the plant . To borrow a concept from my Microsoft days , focus on the people , process , and technology parts of each step . To assess the people , feel free to interview laundry staff . Are they engaged ? Do they look and act professionally ? Do they follow good hygiene practices ? Do they follow safe work practices ? Are they dressed appropriately ? During my inspections , I always ask employees to explain their roles . Most take pride and are more than happy to share the details of their job . Either way , interviewing laundry staff is a great way to understand staff engagement and competence .
Pay attention to the laundry infrastructure and the laundry equipment . Is the plant clean and bright or is it dirty , dingy , and full of lint ? Are surfaces , especially clean-linen surfaces , clean and devoid of lint ? Examine the finish carts ; are they clean ? Ask personnel to explain the cart-cleaning protocol and how they know if the carts are clean . Plant cleanliness quickly demonstrates an operation ’ s overall quality of service and
32 • www . healthcarehygienemagazine . com • july 2024