Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service, whose six locations serve hospitals and health systems across the western United States and Canada, has recently qualified for renewal of the Hygienically Clean Healthcare certification for these three locations: Albuquerque, NM and Oklahoma City, OK in the United States, and Abbotsford, British Columbia in Canada. The recertification reflects their continued commitment to best management practices (BMPs) in laundering as verified by on-site inspection and their capability to produce hygienically clean textiles as quantified by ongoing microbial testing. Ecotex has provided laundry and linen management services to hospitals and other medical facilities for more than 30 years. Other Ecotex laundries that carry the Hygienically Clean Healthcare certification are located in Tacoma, WA in the United States, and in Canada, Kelowna, British Columbia and Mississauga, Ontario.

The Hygienically Clean Healthcare certification confirms the organization’s continuing dedication to infection prevention, compliance with recognized industry standards and processing healthcare textiles using BMPs as described in its quality assurance documentation, a focal point for Hygienically Clean inspectors’ evaluation. The independent, third-party inspection must also confirm essential evidence that: 

•             Employees are properly trained and protected

•             Managers understand regulatory requirements

•             OSHA-compliant

•             Physical plant operates effectively

To achieve certification initially, laundries pass three rounds of outcome-based microbial testing, indicating that their processes are producing Hygienically Clean Healthcare textiles and diminished presence of yeast, mold and harmful bacteria. They also must pass a facility inspection. To maintain their certification, they must pass quarterly testing to ensure that as laundry conditions change, such as water quality, textile fabric composition and wash chemistry, laundered product quality is consistently maintained. Re-inspection occurs every two to three years.

This process eliminates subjectivity by focusing on outcomes and results that verify textiles cleaned in these facilities meet appropriate hygienically clean standards and BMPs for hospitals, surgery centers, medical offices, nursing homes and other medical facilities.

Hygienically Clean Healthcare certification acknowledges laundries’ effectiveness in protecting healthcare operations by verifying quality control procedures in linen, uniform and facility services operations related to the handling of textiles containing blood and other potentially infectious materials.

Certified laundries use processes, chemicals and BMPs acknowledged by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, American National Standards Institute and others. Introduced in 2012, Hygienically Clean Healthcare brought to North America the international cleanliness standards for healthcare linens and garments used worldwide by the Certification Association for Professional Textile Services and the European Committee for Standardization.

Objective experts in epidemiology, infection control, nursing and other healthcare professions work with Hygienically Clean launderers to ensure the certification continues to enforce the highest standards for producing clean healthcare textiles.

“Congratulations to Ecotex Healthcare Linen on their certification,” said Joseph Ricci, TRSA president and CEO. “This achievement proves their commitment to infection prevention and that their laundry takes every step possible to prevent human illness.”

Ecotex also holds the TRSA Clean Green Certification, certifying the company’s commitment to practicing environmental stewardship on a companywide basis. For information on Hygienically Clean and other TRSA certification programs, contact Angela Freeman, manager, certification programs at 703.519.0029, ext. 111, or email afreeman@trsa.org.

 For access to certification-specific resources and training created by the TRSA Healthcare Committee and the Hygienically Clean Advisory board, visit www.hygienicallyclean.org.