Regular End-to-End Testing, Effective Employee Training Cited As Key Measures to Maintaining Sanitary Laundry

Healthcare laundries should regularly test for contamination and challenge their hygiene practices at multiple points throughout the process, according to Gregory Gicewicz in a two-part series, "Countering Concerns in Healthcare Laundry Sanitation," recently published

in American Laundry News (ALN). Gicewicz is president of Sterile Surgical Systems of Tumwater, WA. Gicewicz (photo, right) is past president of the Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Council (HLAC) and currently serves as HLAC inspection committee chair.

The ALN series features various experts in the field and industry and includes news of peer-reviewed research examining contamination and sanitary linens, and discussion of recent events raising relevant safety concerns

In the second part of the series, Gicewicz stresses the importance of effective training of laundry employees on the highest standards for infection prevention. He says training should include topics like bloodborne pathogens, personal protective equipment (PPE), linen inspecting, wash chemistry, cart cleaning, cart protecting, environmental cleaning, environmental testing, and safe linen handling. And he recommends testing of employees on the training.

Regarding laundry employees, Gicewicz says in the article that laundry work hits home hardest when laundry employees see the impact of their work on sick hospital patients. "Laundry workers who witness the criticality of their work in patient safety are much more likely to view their work as a higher calling rather than just a job," he says. "Give them this opportunity by taking them to see their work in action."

Gicewicz says laundry operators can stay up to date on identified contamination/sanitation issues and methods by regularly checking with expert organizations like HLAC that specialize in HCT contamination/sanitation issues and methods. HLAC is a nonprofit organization that inspects and accredits laundries processing textiles for hospitals, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities.

March 12, 2020

Topic Area: Press Release

Regular End-to-End Testing, Effective Employee Training Cited As Key Measures to Maintaining Sanitary Laundry

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