Good Health by Hygiene and Housekeeping

The support services for patient care are indispensable for a hospital to facilitate the patient care process.

- M Ram Vittal Rao

Hospital management today has become patient and customer oriented. It is an established fact that the patient outcome is a result of efficient and appropriate medical, nursing and allied care along with provision of good hygienic food, clean linen, safe environment, congenial atmosphere and good interpersonal relationship.

The support services for patient care are indispensable for a hospital to perform in true perspective and facilitate the patient care process. Linen and laundry is a recognised support service which not only ensures prevention and containment of hospital infection but also contributes to widen the image of the hospital in the eyes of public. In hospital, the term linen or clothes is used for clothing of the patient, medical and para-medical staff and also the clothing material used for the patients care services in operation theaters, beds trolleys including the mattresses, pillows, blankets, sheets and towels, and others.

Clean linen installs psychological confidence in the patients and the public and enhances their faith in the services rendered by the hospital. Simultaneously, an efficient linen and laundry service is of advantage for hospital marketing and speaks of the ability of the medical care service.

QUALITY CONTROL 

Quality control in linen and laundry service is a prospective study and motivation and job satisfaction of the staff working in the linen and laundry service was studied by subjecting them to pre-designed semi-structured questionnaire. The present study was conducted on the concept of the model i.e structure, process and outcome.

MATERIALS & UTILITY SERVICES