Infection Prevention and Control in Laundry Facilities For

Infection Prevention and Control in Laundry Facilities For Care Homes

Processing Laundry DIRTY CLEAN • Sort used laundry • Segregate • • – Normal – Infectious – Heat sensitive • Transportation • Pre-wash • Wash Drying Finishing Transport Storage

Laundry Facilities • These are outlined in the guidance as essential quality requirements: – Industrial machines – require annual validation – Document servicing and repair plus ongoing observation they are working correctly – Risk assessment of the area and processes – Personal protective equipment – Don’t store clean linen in the laundry room – Hand hygiene facilities – Easily identified dirty and clean areas of the facility

Do’s and Don'ts • Do: take care when handling laundry and have a clear process for staff to follow • Don’t: handle dirty laundry without wearing gloves and an apron (PPE) • Do: wash your hands before and after handling laundry and laundry baskets/bags and after removing gloves • Don’t: leave dirty laundry lying around take it straight to the laundry room in the correct container

• Do: make sure staff know what is the “dirty” and what is the “clean” area of the room • Don’t: overload the washing machine • Do: wash dirty laundry before soiled or contaminated laundry • Don’t: use the same baskets for dirty and clean laundry, label them appropriately • Do: make sure there is clear separation of the dirty and clean areas of the room

• Don’t: hand sluice dirty laundry – use the sluice cycle on the washing machine • Do: make sure the laundry room is kept clean and tidy at all times • Don’t: store clean laundry in the room for any length of time, take it straight to clients rooms or the linen cupboard for storage